Coxtown Manor by Angela Moore

Belgian-born chef, Edouard, bought Coxtown Manor five years ago and has been steadily refurbishing, modernising and building his hotel’s reputation as he goes along. He’s too laid-back to be called evangelical but his passion shows through his Belgian-Irish charm.

The house itself is as much of a mix as Edouard’s accent. The front half is fine Georgian; at the back past the kitchens it gives way to the flagstones and thick, cool walls of the original farmhouse; further back still is the 350-year-old coach-house.

Past the formal façade it’s an informal, warm, welcoming house. The sitting room, with its exquisite plasterwork ceilings, has cosy sofas and low tables ranged around the fireplace. The furniture is an eclectic mix of antiques brought over from Belgium; the accent is on the solid and comfortable. Modern Belgian art hangs on the walls with cricketing prints and tapestries. Picture windows (with plastic frames installed by a previous owner; Edouard loathes them and they are next on his list to change) frame views of wild green hills and sheep and rain.

The restaurant, with a short and often-changed menu, is very good. All produce is sourced locally (some from John, the “organic man”, who popped in on the morning we left). Seafood is straight out of Donegal harbour and the Charolais beef has to be experienced.

Guidebooks have trouble placing Coxtown Manor. This is neither a stuffy, clubby country house nor a new-fangled designer place. There’s a little snug bar, which doesn’t fit the formal country house code. Edouard has kept his rates as low as possible and refuses to close his restaurant to the public (he also refuses to alter his menu to reflect area tastes, so the squab pigeon stays and you’re unlikely to be trampled by a herd of local families). It’s unstuffy but still feels special and it’s the closest thing I can imagine to the old staying-with-friends-who-can-cook cliché.

The rooms
In the main house, they are spacious and high-ceilinged. The white-painted wrought iron beds have piles of pillows snuggle into. There are working fireplaces for an added dollop of romance. Bathrooms are excellent with high-tech double-headed showers, apparently the latest thing in Belgium. In the coach house, rooms are equally spacious but laid out in a cleaner, more contemporary style. There are TVs but no phones, so you can be left in peace.

All in all, a great place – easygoing and hard to leave.

Come for:
- Striding about in the beautiful Donegal countryside, quoting Yeats

Not suitable for:
- People who like their country houses formal and forbidding