Paul Carroll of Ghan House

A Taste of Ireland

Sunday, 12 December 2021 - 36 minutes

When Paul Carroll's parents Joyce and John took over Ghan House in the early 1990s, the Georgian mansion on the edge of Carlingford was in a run-down state. The house was built in 1727 by William Stannus, a politician from Dublin. Two tunnels once ran from the kitchen into the centre of the town. Monks used to bake bread here and deliver it through the tunnel.

The Carrolls carefully restored the house, keeping its unusual early Georgian features. They turned it into a cookery school, restaurant and elegant guest house, which has been garlanded with accolades. After working as a corporate photographer, Paul came back to Carlingford to help his mother run the restaurant and guest house. He does not regret his change of career.

"What I love about Carlingford is that it has a cosmopolitan, continental atmosphere. There are good coffee shops and pubs, and a wide variety of people living here. www.ghanhouse.com