I was invited to afternoon tea at Christies , wow was I impressed , , it was amazing , firstly the China tea set was colourful and just so beautiful , and what an array of wonderful delights to tempt us from the cake stands we were presented with , from savouries to miniature cakes scones and truffles , everything was just perfection , it was more a case of where on earth will we begin , and how on earth will we manage to eat all of it. We were seated near a huge open fire , served by a really friendly young man , and nothing was too much trouble for him , it was a throughly enjoyable experience , one I would highly recommend ,

We got an over night BB and Dinner deal at this hotel for approx. €100 for two. The Reception area is at the back of Blarney Woollen Mills. Check in was fast, the area around the Reception has been nicely redecorated. You can access the hotel from the Large Coffee shop which has displays of goods for Meadow and Byrne, this is also the Breakfast room. Don't forget to get your 10% discount booklet for the Mill on check in. Our room was clean and there was plenty hot water etc. The Room was a little dated but was fine for overnight. It had everything we needed and was lovely and quiet.

Dinner which was included in our rate was at the nearby Mill Restaurant. Note you need to walk out of the hotel and turn right. Its only a minutes walk from main lobby. You need to book at weekend nights. It was very busy. Food was good and the service fine. Our meal was included but prices looked fair for the quality of food. Breakfast was good the following morning. The only negative was the lack of fresh fruit when we got there. Perhaps it was available earlier. But the full Irish was served to the table and lovely. The Woollen Mill has a nice shop and also has a Meadow and Byrne for Household items. Plenty to do around the area, walks, shops and of course the famous Blarney Stone is just a short walk away. You can go in to Cork city on the bus just outside the hotel.

Brought my elderly Dad here for lunch because I could trust that fresh, plain Irish food would be available along with other more modern foods. They had a lovely garden salad to accompany their gorgeous home cooked ham (all meat, no fat or gristle) and beautifully cooked chips. There was also homecooked pizza which looked amazing, along with fantastic homebaked massive rolls, in which you could put homecooked meats and salads. They also had lovely homemade sauces for the sandwiches. For afters, they had an array of delicious homecooked desserts.This is a real tourist spot and along with the restaurant, there is an hotel, bar and of course Blarney Woollen Mills. It was lovely to see tourists from America, Australia, Germany, Japan etc. We'll be back.