Our first series explores how local chefs, restaurateurs, artisans, brewers and distillers are crafting some of the best food and drink you may or may not have heard of, furthering Northern Ireland’s culinary scene and adapting to serve local communities over the pandemic period.
It’s my field. It’s my child. I nursed it. I nourished it… I made a living thing of it.
Bull McCabe in ‘The Field’
If there’s one thing that’s true about this island is that the land is everything. This is doubly true for the Wilson family, who have transformed what used to be their family home into a property that everyone, from Ballynahinch and beyond, can enjoy. The Montalto Estate provides fun and excellent food that can occupy families, hill walkers, gardeners, historians and foodies for an entire day.
We caught up Owner & Proprietor, David Wilson, and their Executive Chef, David Earle – this is what they had to say:
Tell us your story…
[David Wilson] My family has owned this estate for over 25 years. It was our family home for a time. Slowly, my siblings and I moved away. Eventually my parents moved away, too, and they gave us the opportunity to decide what to do with this 400 acre country estate.
Starting in the mid-2000s, we put a plan in place to revitalise the entire estate. We started slowly, renovating the main house. We then opened The Carriage Rooms, which is now our wedding venue. That all took about five or six years to complete.
We had invested so much money and time when we lived here, making the transition of turning it into a destination less strenuous. We developed and maintained the gardens over the years; they became something we really enjoyed for ourselves. Nobody was living here for a while and no one was seeing the gardens – we thought this was a shame.
“Let’s create something that people will want to come and see”, we thought.
So I think the gardens sort of became the first phase for opening this attraction. We also maintained excellent trails through the woods for people to enjoy gentle strolls and day hikes, which makes us appeal to a wider audience.
What is it that attracts people to this place?
We came up with the idea in 2013 that we wanted to open up the estate to people. We knew we had more to offer beyond the house and wedding venue. We designed more trails through the woodlands and walks through the gardens and we created the alpine garden with the help of the Alpine Garden Society – Ulster Group.
The one thing we started to realise was, yes, these things are nice and people will come to see them, but they don’t keep people here. People won’t stay if there’s not a cafe to come to and get a cup of coffee and a bite to eat. We realised, quite quickly, that we needed to do all of the above to be successful. People might go for an hour and a half to a garden, but they’ll only come once or twice, unless there’s a place for them to hang out and socialise.
Tell us about the café…
We then focused on the café. Did we expect the coffee shop to be as big as it is now? Initially, absolutely not! But things evolve.
We’ve had people who will stop by the visitor centre and say, “We arrived at ten o’clock this morning for a cup of tea and a bun and now it’s half three! We got another cuppa, then our lunch, and then just kept pressing on!”
We wanted everything put in place before we open – nothing is left to chance. We wouldn’t want to make the coffee shop a certain size and then realise it’s too small and then later have to spend more time and money expanding it. We put a lot of thought into everything we designed, making sure it’s functional and, ultimately, enjoyable to our visitors. This approach has been our calling card and it has worked out well for us.
What sets you apart from other estates?
There’s a lot of very nice estates and gardens in Northern Ireland. They’re generally National Trust with thousands of members across the UK. They do excellent work, but they have to abide by the regulations of the institution. It’s very difficult for them to differentiate themselves from everywhere else.
We set out specifically to cater to locals – people within a ten mile radius. It has grown organically from there. News of the estate just sort of spread through word of mouth. Now we have people coming from greater Belfast and various other regions. We now look into targeting specific areas, but we are generally a place for locals rather than people from further afar.
Tell us about your clientele…
We realised early on that there is a demand for places where people can come and spend at least half a day at – a one stop destination that appeals to the whole family happy. Basically, if you make kids happy, the family will be happy. Family is really something we try to focus on, especially on the weekends. We also get lots of walkers on the weekend.
During the week, there are less families as children are at school. The more strenuous walks are rarely done. We’ll get more people around retirement age. They’ll walk around the gardens and up to the house. They’ll come for their coffee, or a bun or cake, maybe lunch. We’re quite lucky that we have the three distinct groups – families, retirees and walkers. They don’t tend to interact much, but they all equally enjoy the grounds.
How have you adapted to Covid-19?
Luckily, our cafe has lot of space. This has really helped us with reopening. We’ve been very fortunate – it’s a nice space, people never feel cramped and they’re able to comfortably socially distance.
Things are obviously a bit of a struggle at the minute, but we’re doing what we can. We weren’t in a rush to reopen, even when we were allowed to. We could have opened on the 1st of July, but we waited until the 29th. We took our time; we made sure all safety measures were put in place and that people would be comfortable..
What was great about reopening was, it was almost like coronavirus wasn’t here. People were just eager to get out and do something and feel normal again. We have lots of sanitising stations in place and ask customers to socially distance to ensure the safety of our visitors and staff. We have also limited the number of people that can visit the trails and gardens each day.
How has Ballynahinch taken you in?
We have become sort of centre point for the Ballynahinch community. This was our goal from the ‘get-go’. I’m not sure they knew what was happening, but they have really taken us on-board.
We run a membership scheme – it’s basically the equivalent of visiting five times a year. Our regulars are in here about 150 times a year. If we’re not seeing them, we start to worry!
Many come in the morning and walk their dog. They’ll then come back for their lunch or a coffee. We often see some of them a few times a day. It’s the local people that get the maximum benefit out of this place.
We feel that people overall have really taken the Café at Montalto into their hearts – we were voted the best local product café in Northern Ireland during a recent public vote for the Irish News.
Is there a focus on doing business with ‘local’ suppliers?
We have great relationships with a number of local companies. We use local as much as we possibly can. We grow all our own herbs and many of our vegetables here on the estate. We have a fruit garden, our own orchards and beehives for honey. We’ve got red and black currants and make our own jams and cordials.
We try to keep a good relationship with suppliers in the local area. We have accounts with many of the local shops. We go to them to supply us with as much as possible, whether that’s gardening equipment, materials or maintenance services. In a way, it creates its own little economy. We feel we are an integral part of the community.
And now I’d say that has expanded past Ballynahinch to people headed to Newcastle or different parts of the Mournes. Ballynahinch is now thriving and I feel we are part of that. There’s so much happening for such a small town. It’s known for a lot more than the traffic now!
What’s your favourite part of the estate?
If you’re stressed out, it’s nice to sit by the boat house with a view across the lake towards the main house – it’s very calming. Another way to de-stress is to go for walks in the evening. I live just off the estate and I make a point of going for a walk before heading home. Many of the employees do the same.
What kind of food are you serving?
[Chef Earle] We follow the seasons and use what’s available locally. In the summer, we see an uptake in our breakfast and brunch menus. At lunchtime we’ll do more sandwiches, salads and a couple of hot options. We have been using a wood fired pizza oven since we opened, and have been able to offer tasty flatbreads. We are now using this to offer hand crafted pizzas and garlic breads on our pizza nights.
We have had to cut back our menu due to Covid, unfortunately. We’re taking this opportunity to re-evaluate. We had a very good, substantial menu before that changed every day. We’ve since cut that back and kept things simple to ensure that our customers’ firm favourites are still available – give people what they want!
We will always promote seasonality and locality, this is something we’ll never compromise on.
What special events do you do?
Previously, we have held gourmet evenings about once every three months or so. They were always themed. One such was a Burns Night where we served a six course supper. We had Burns poetry readings and offered local whiskey from the Hinch Distillery, along with piping in the haggis. We tweaked it to have an Irish twist on the classic Burns Night format and it was wildly successful. We had someone from the distillery in to discuss the history of whisk(e)y and did a food pairing with different courses on the menu. We hope to still offer our gourmet nights once every couple of months now that we’re reopened.
Should people be proud of the food in NI?
The food in NI is spectacular, but it isn’t celebrated nearly enough. We’re getting better. There’s more than just your average, everyday food. We have craft beer and spirits that are hard to beat anywhere in the world. We’ve got cheese and bread makers now. People are getting back to the old fashioned way of doing things – quality over quantity. We’ve got places like Abernathy doing unbelievable butter and dairy products.
With our events, we always bring passionate people involved in crafting local products to help spread knowledge and interest in local industries. We want that passion to grow. Yes, we can provide the food, no problem; we’ll serve you a beer. But, if the man or woman that makes that beer or churns the butter is standing in front of you telling you about it, it make a big difference. It helps the younger generation, too, in knowing and taking interest in where their food comes from.
What does the future hold?
[David Wilson] We’re quite optimistic here. We try not to concern ourselves with what we can’t control and just do ‘us’, and it seems to work out in the end. And I think that’s the goal now, just keep being ‘us’, learn every day and serve people graciously. If we can continue to do that and uplift the local community, anything is possible.
Do you have a message for the community at this time?
Come out, enjoy a walk around the grounds and have a bite to eat – we look forward to welcoming you to the estate.