Indulge yourself with some good food
Athlone Advertiser, April 2009
"Sometimes it's nice to step away from all the hustle and bustle of daily life and retreat to a tranquil environment where you can relax while enjoying good food and wine.
Temple Spa, in Horseleap, Moate, Co Westmeath is an adult only destination which revolves around the simple philosophy; eat healthy, drink wisely, and sleep well.
This philosophy can be found in every aspect of the Spa, including its restaurant.
The Garden Room at Temple Spa has perfected the art of creating a comfortable and soothing atmosphere around healthy and delicious food.
This is the perfect location to retreat to if you're fed up of the monotony of your usual Saturday night of rushing to a jam packed restaurant where you're against the clock to eat up before the next sitting arrives and sent packing to the nearest pub afterwards where you sit uncomfortably for a couple of hours before heading home. Only to wake up the next morning feeling guilty about the previous nights gluttony.
The Garden Room offers you something a little different.
We arrived at Temple Spa just before lights out for Earth Hour. The building was lit beautifully by candle light as were led into the lounge area. Full of comfy couches we were greeted by our waiter who asked us if we would like a drink, he then gave us our menu and allowed us ample time to go through it before taking our order.
The menu itself is wide ranging yet simple, and surely caters for every taste. The French chef, who has a Michelin Star background has created a menu that can be best described as clean, fresh, and packed with flavour. There is a wide choice of low-fat, gluten free, wheat free, dairy free, and vegetarian options.
The starters range from a delicious chicken liver parfait with red onion and blueberry compote to seared scallops wrapped in Black Forest ham and served with pea puree. And of course there is a freshly made vegetable soup which is served piping hot and comes with a selection of breads for your choosing.
Between the starter and main course we were served an apple cider sorbet which was beautifully refreshing, and cleansed the palette before the main course.
There is a wide selection of mains including a lamb shank confit stuffed with wild mushroom mouse, seared sea bass and scallops on home-made tagliatelle, pan friend chicken breast, and a mouth watering char grilled Irish beef fillet.
At no time during the meal were we rushed or plagued by our waiter, who instead left us to enjoy the good food and beautiful dinning room which is comfortable, atmospheric, and non-intrusive
For those with a sweet tooth there are delicious home-made deserts on offer including a highly recommended Bailey's creme brulee and a seasonal fruit platter which comes with a zingly fruit sorbet.
It's all about the extra touches at The Garden Room, from the comfortable lounge to the table settings, to the beautifully presented food and ample food portions.
Everyone deserves to get away from it all from time to time. The Temple Spa surely offers you a self-indulgent atmosphere to allow you leave your worries at home and enjoy some good food and company."
M Daly, Ed. |
