We are often asked for recommendations of hotels in Dublin and parts west, north and south.
(For those of you who skipped the geography class, east lies the Irish Sea). This is the equivalent of suggesting either a “hot date” or a “racing cert” – activities which normally lead to badly bruised heads and wallets.
What is infinitely more interesting is why we recommend certain properties and shun others. It’s not as if the latter are bug-infested joints whose bars attract a particular nocturnal clientele. Rather, it’s their “je ne sais pas”; not their “je ne sais quoi.”
The stars, on the other hand, are up there in the heavens because of their people.
In recent years, Ireland has been covered with concrete cubes known as “bed factories”. Now that the ruinous devotion to the humiliated construction industry has broken the banks, perhaps sanity may return. You cannot build a “unit”; install staff of many nationalities and an inexperienced manager and hope to survive.
A true hotelier – and it’s the same word in French and English – is so much more than a “manager”. Like masters of any craft, be it jewelled watches or millefeuille pastry, the hotelier not only knows his business but has a passion to transmit this love of looking after people to his colleagues. Money will not do it; endless expensive and utterly vacuous training courses will not do it – only by example, encouragement and appreciation can a manager recruit and motivate his people.
That being a hotelier was in the blood, rather than the bank balance, was axiomatic a couple of generations back. It has been our unmitigated pleasure to have dealt with – and to still deal with, even on our extremely modest scale – such luminaries at Francis Brennan at the Park in Kenmare, Ronnie Counihan at Renvyle and Conor O’Connell at his Gleann Fia guesthouse in Killarney.
I am happy to report that there appears to be at least one man who is carrying on the tradition – Mark O’Sullivan at Brooks Hotel in Dublin. I have not met the man but if our Lord was speaking true when he said: “By their deeds shall ye know them” – and He did know a bit about hospitality – then Mr O’Sullivan must run one helluva ship.
Carol (the fragrant Mrs C) and I venture to Dublin from time to time, mostly to watch the Irish rugby team take on the world. “Tacky” is when they play jigs and reels at Pratt & Whitney decibels when Ireland manage the odd point; Brooks Hotel (www.brookshotel.ie) is sheer class. From the first telephone call to Lisa Moore, the reservations manager, to subsequent inquiries to the ever-patient front desk as to how one is actually supposed to find the place, to the warm welcome and solicitous inquiry as to the state of my cold from the doorman and to the apologetic and efficient welcome in a crowded Sunday morning breakfast buffet, this was courtesy personified.
Sheer common courtesy and efficiency – not unctuous, not servile, no extended palms; just the best of manners in a country and a city where the basic lessons of looking after people have taken on the character of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
I was so impressed that I wrote Mr O’Sullivan a thank you email. I asked him to pass it round the staff, which I believe he did, though I am sure that they get many such compliments.
All I can say to you is that you should try Brooks for yourself. You may not have our experience but I think that I am on fairly safe ground here and I wish you a wonderful stay.
Two final thoughts: the hotel neither asked me to write this nor did they offer any inducements. We value our independence and pay our own way, thank you.
And why does the title have the Middle English spelling of “courtesy”? Because a line from Chaucer came in to my head when I was trying to best describe this excellent establishment.
You don’t get a lot of that on tripadvisor now, do you?
And finally, for our transatlantic readers, can I suggest a similar hotel 40 miles from New York City. Should you be in the vicinity and want somewhere special, try www.bernardsinn.com. I have only lunched there but I think you’ll like it.
