Wins for two Roscommon eateries at Georgina Campbell Awards

Two eateries in Roscommon were among the winners of the Georgina Campbell Irish Food & Hospitality Awards for 2021.

Gleeson's Townhouse in Roscommon town, and Keenan's Hotel, Bar and Restaurant in Tarmonbarry picked up accolades at this year's awards, which were billed as a "love letter to Irish food and hospitality".

Gleeson's won the outdoor dining award in the guesthouse category. Georgina Campbell described the business as "a handsome old cut stone townhouse that provides just what every visitor hopes to find: a warm welcome, comfortable rooms and first-class food.

"The Gleesons - Mary and Eamonn, along with their daughter Cáit, who is General Manager - place great emphasis on food, offering wholesome fare in their popular coffee shop and the Manse Restaurant – and in two spacious outside eating areas in the sheltered courtyard in front of the house.

"It’s an attractive set up and has proved very popular – partly, no doubt, because they took the unusual (and environmentally responsible) step of installing heated seating instead of using space heaters."

Keenan's, meanwhile, won the Georgina Campbell 'Taste of the Waterways' award in the hotel category.

It was described as a "hospitable family-run hotel beside the bridge... a favourite watering hole, known for good wholesome food and cheerful, efficient service – which never faltered at any time during the Covid crisis when opening was permitted.

"The long-established bar is the heart of the business, offering informal meals all day - fish casserole or bacon & cabbage at lunch, half roast duckling for dinner, perhaps (and the steak sandwich is not to be missed).

"The hotel’s newer Shannonside Restaurant offers a more formal evening dining option in a bright, new tall-windowed room on the waterside corner of the building –and, upstairs, there is smart en-suite accommodation to match."

The full list of award-winners can be found here.