Kilkenny

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Kilkenny

A January 2000 trip to Kilkenny by Leesa

Kilkenny CastleMore Photos

As many Irish county towns, the medieval market town of Kilkenny is popular with the Irish for weekend breaks, and stag nights. Visiting in mid January, we were advised to book accommodation and the better restaurants in advance. The town also buzzes with young Dubliners returning ‘home’ for the weekend.

  • 11 reviews
  • 5 photos

KilkennyBest of IgoUgo

Overview

Kilkenny
Highlights
Kilkenny is arguably a fairly sleepy little market town. For us, the highlights were
* Getting out of Dublin for a weekend
* The warmth of the country pubs
* The Cathedral
* Kilkenny Castle
* Jerpoint Abbey

Lowlights
* Lack of good dining options
* Many tourist attractions closed outside of summer

Quick Tips:

Best Way To Get Around:

We drove to Kilkenny from Dublin on some great EU funded roads, but you can there easy enough by bus or train, although routes from Dublin will be busy over weekends.

Berkley HouseBest of IgoUgo

Hotel

A very friendly B&B located in a Georgian house just off the main cross roads. The young couple who ran/managed the place were a mine of information, and got us our table at Pordylos. The manager’s husband had his leg in plaster , so we regularly helped him and ourselves to fresh coffee.

Our double with ensuite & telly was reasonably priced at £30 a night, although we could hear all the stag & hen nights walking the main street until early morning, and then put up with drunken snoring from the room below us.

  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by Leesa on February 26, 2002

Berkley House
Lower Patrick Street Kilkenny, Ireland
056 64848

Pordylo'sBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Pordylos"

Recommended by a friend from Kilkenny, this restaurant was on a par with our dining experiences in Dublin. And we were apparently extremely fortunate to book on a table a few hours in advance on Friday night

The food is modern ‘world food’. My boyfriend had a spicy South American Stew, and I had a Thai Curry. My only criticism is that the food appeared to be ‘dumbed down’ to local tastes. My sushi starter had cooked fish and crystallised ginger, and my Thai Curry was extremely mild. My boyfriend’s stew was quite spicy though.

  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by Leesa on February 25, 2002

Pordylo's
The Butterslip Kilkenny, Ireland
+353 56 70660

Paris TexasBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

I should have realised this was part of a chain. The restaurant was similar to an American diner, and catered to rather bland tastes (and hen nights). My Duck a l’Orange was more like an overcooked stew. The teenage staff seemed rather disinterested.
  • Member Rating 2 out of 5 by Leesa on February 25, 2002

Paris Texas
92 High Street Kilkenny, Ireland
+353 56 61822

Café SolBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

An excellent lunch stop, with Mediterranean inspired food. A tiny ‘front room’ of a place, this seemed a quite sophisticated choice, judging by the numbers of young lawyers and older ‘ladies that lunch’. Given the size of the place, if you’d like dinner I suggest you book as there can’t have been more than 10 tables.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by Leesa on February 25, 2002

Café Sol
William Street Kilkenny, Ireland
(056) 64987

Kilkenny CastleBest of IgoUgo

Attraction

Kilkenny Castle
Kilkenny Castle was more modern and frilly looking than you’d expect for a Norman castle, as it has been lovingly restored, having been sold to the state for £50 in the 60s by the owners whose family had lived in it for 400 years.

We were shown around by a real ‘drama queen’ character, who took full advantage of having some English to tease. The tour was well worth it, explaining the castle’s history, the family’s history, as well as the trials of restoration, as the place was apparently almost a wreck when sold off.

  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by Leesa on February 25, 2002

Kilkenny Castle
The Parade Kilkenny, Ireland
+353 56 21450

St. Canice's CathedralBest of IgoUgo

Attraction | "St Canice's Cathedral"

St Canice's Cathedral
On a crisp, windswept Sunday after Mass, the deserted Cathedral was timeless. Quite appropriate for a cathedral built in the 13th Century!

The interior walls were lined with ancient gravestones and were a fascinating read. An aging parish member took great pleasure in showing us around, pointing out the oldest tombs. The oldest is inscribed in Norman French from 1280. Whilst this impromptu tour was free, donating £1 or so for the Cathedral’s upkeep seems only reasonable.

  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by Leesa on February 25, 2002

St. Canice's Cathedral
Vicar St Kilkenny, Ireland
+353 56 64971

Rothe HouseBest of IgoUgo

Attraction

Heavily advertised as a medieval merchants house we found it closed when we first walked by on Saturday afternoon, with no opening times to be seen. We found it open by chance on Sunday.

As a medieval house it was relatively interesting, although rather empty. Upstairs there was an informal museum, which was far more revealing about Kilkenny’s more recent past and part in the struggle for independence.

  • Member Rating 2 out of 5 by Leesa on February 25, 2002

Rothe House
Parliament St Kilkenny, Ireland
+353 56 22893

Jerpoint AbbeyBest of IgoUgo

Attraction

We visited towards the end of January and were amazed to find the abbey, described in our guidebook as ‘Ireland’s finest Cistercian ruins’, closed! They open, apparently, from Easter through September.
  • Member Rating 2 out of 5 by Leesa on February 25, 2002

Jerpoint Abbey
Jerpoint Co. Kilkenny, Ireland
+353 56 24623

Kells PrioryBest of IgoUgo

Attraction

The 12th Century ruins of Kells Priory were in a poor state of repair when we visited. With ‘No Entry’ signs hung around the crumbling walls and open gates, the main concern being for visitors safety with a very real risk of falling masonry. We skirted a safe distance around some of the larger walls & buildings. The ruins were extensive, but with no explanatory notes as the place was officially closed to the public.
  • Member Rating 2 out of 5 by Leesa on February 25, 2002

Kells Priory
13km south of Kilkenny Kilkenny, Ireland

Tynans PubBest of IgoUgo

Attraction

This pub was another recommendation by our friend from Kilkenny. According to her, this pub used to be run by an increasingly elderly couple, until their shaking got too much to pour a good pint. The pub is now under new management, but hasn’t changed its typical cosy pub feel.

First visiting early on Friday evening, it was all but deserted, but wonderfully cosy and friendly. The middle aged manager became our whiskey adviser for an hour or so. Saturday, we returned around 9.30pm to find the pub jam packed with what we gathered to be a selection of Dublin’s professionals. Both times we visited there was gentle blues playing in the background, and the TV remained turned off.

  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by Leesa on February 25, 2002

Tynans Pub
Kilkenny, Ireland

About the Writer

Leesa
Leesa
Brighton, United Kingdom

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