Bell rings the changes at Galgorm
Renowned County Antrim chef, Chris Bell is now the driving force at the new Eagle Bar and Grill on the Galgorm Castle Estate near Ballymena. His arrival is part of an ongoing, multi-million pound development at the leading leisure and hospitality venue…
Chef Chris Bell (36), formerly of the River Room restaurant at Galgorm Resort and Spa near Ballymena, has taken on a new challenge.
Chris – the first Irish winner of the Gordon Ramsey Scholarship in 2002 – is heading up operations at the newly refurbished and re-branded clubhouse restaurant on Galgorm Castle estate.
Now known as the Eagle Bar and Grill, the venue’s transformation is one element of an £8m development programme announced for the 220-acre estate last May. It is complimented by an 18-hole, par 72 championship golf course, a thriving business park and an extensive new garden centre including a 140-seater coffee shop.
The £250,000 make-over at the clubhouse includes plush new changing facilities and relaxation areas for members as well as a contemporary balcony area at the Eagle that allows members and visitors to dine alfresco.
The new restaurant and bar facilities represent a unique partnership between Chris Bell and the renowned Mourne Seafood Bar, which has well-established outlets in Belfast and Dundrum. Speaking to LCN recently, Chris revealed that he’d had no hesitation in accepting when the opportunity to get involved in the Galgorm Castle project arose towards the end of 2013:
“I’d worked away from Northern Ireland for a few years but had always planned on doing something back home,” he said. “This is the opportunity I’ve been waiting for.”
Chris is originally from the Ballymena area and he launched his culinary career as a 16-year-old schoolboy working at the Galgorm Manor Hotel, now the Galgorm Resort and Spa. Work subsequently took Chris away from the area and he went on to build an impressive record working with some of the world’s best chefs, including Ferran Adria at elBulli and Michael Roux jnr. at La Gavroce. He was also head chef at the prestigious Longridge Restaurant in Preston.
He collected a Chef of the Year title in 2003 and 2004 and he featured as a finalist in two series of the BBC’s Great British Menu. By 2011, however, he was back at the Galgorm hotel, heading up operations at the River Room restaurant.
Now installed at the Eagle, Chris is convinced that the new restaurant is exactly what the local area was in need of:
“I had looked at a few things beforehand, then the opportunity at Galgorm came up,” he said. What’s happening here now is very exciting, this is a fantastic set-up.”
As well as the Eagle Bar and Grill, the new garden centre and coffee shop – part of the locally-based Creative Gardens group – has been in operation since the beginning of February and work on a new phase of the Courtyard Business Park is set to being in May.
The castle itself – built in the 16th century as the ancestral home of the MacQuillan clan – is now in the hands of Christopher Brooke, the entrepreneur and businessman behind the entire estate project. Plans are in place for the development of the castle and although little is currently being revealed, Mr Brooke has previously talked about creating a boutique hotel.
In the Eagle Bar and Grill, Chris has established a firm preference for locally-sourced food, served in relaxed and informal surroundings:
“Our ethos is centred on quality produce in a casual environment at reasonable prices,” he told LCN. “Instead of using olive oil or Parma ham from abroad, we use rapeseed oil from Limavady or cured ham from Peter Hannon in Moira. All our meat, fish and veg are sourced locally. And some of our bottled beers are from local breweries, Hildens in Lisburn and Whitewater in Kilkeel.
“We should be very proud of what we produce here in Northern Ireland and we want to showcase top quality, home-grown produce. Tourists like this local identity and I firmly believe it’s the way forward. As soon as you walk into the restaurant, you’ll know you are in Northern Ireland.”
The menu at the Eagle Bar and Grill features everything that you might expect to see in this type of venue – fish and chips, Irish stew, bangers and mash and steak, but the blackboards also advertise plenty of options for those more adventurous guests who want something a little different.
Chris is assisted in his ambitions by his collaboration with the well-regarded Mourne Seafood brand:
“I’ve known Andy Rea for about 20 years,” he explained. “We both worked for Paul Rankin the late 1990s. I’ve been influenced and impressed by the Mourne Seafood product, it’s quality produce at affordable prices. In a nutshell, I believe this is the future of dining in Northern Ireland.
“Mourne Seafood have come in 50/50 with me and with their know-how and my local knowledge, I believe it makes for a great recipe.”
The Galgorm estate as a whole has a unique offering. Last year, Golfing magazine ranked the championship course at Galgorm as the second-best parkland venue in Northern Ireland and a panel of experts from Golf Digest Ireland has ranked it third in the country. Many successful events have been staged there including last year’s very successful NI Open on the European Challenge Tour.
Christopher Brooke has said that he remains focused on the continued development of the entire estate as a world-class venue:
“This is a new leisure destination with something for all the family,” he said recently. “Golf is still the primary focus with a championship golf course, golf academy, covered driving range and short game area. Our ambition is to keep adding elements to compliment the estate and bring the whole place to life. We want it to be a place people love returning to for all the great facilities. We will host international golf and food events here and showcase Galgorm Castle as a top destination in Northern Ireland for overseas and local visitors.”
