Rugby star Rory Best guest of honour at official opening of Magheramorne Estate

Mr Lyons was commenting following the official opening of the luxury, private-hire venue, which was also attended by Rory Best OBE and the Mayor of Mid and East Antrim, Councillor William McCaughey.

The unveiling of the new chapter in the history of the 19th century estate, which is set in 40 acres of grounds, was hosted by the Allen family.

The minister said: “I was delighted to attend the official opening of Magheramorne Estate. This family business has been built up with much love, passion and hard work and the high-quality venue fits so well with the Northern Ireland Embrace a Giant Spirit brand. The beautiful 40-acre grounds surrounding the estate are also an excellent example of sustainable and regenerative tourism.

“As we emerge from the pandemic, consumer safety remains of paramount importance. Over the last year over 2,000 businesses have been accredited under the We’re Good to Go scheme, including Magheramorne Estate. By working together, I am confident that we will recover tourism’s pre-Covid success and can, not only return to, but greatly surpass our record year of 2019.”

Jane Allen founded Jane’s Kitchen in 1988 and catered her first wedding in 1995. Since then, the business has continued to grow, now providing employment for over 100 people and catering for weddings and events across the island of Ireland and the UK.

Jane, managing director, JKS Magheramorne Estate Ltd, said: “I am very honoured to have our special guests here today to help us celebrate the official opening of Magheramorne Estate and would like to thank them for their continued support.

“My family and I wanted to use our expertise to build on what Northern Ireland already has to offer in hospitality and provide a beautiful luxury, private-hire estate. With over 33 years on the road catering all over Northern Ireland and beyond, the dream of opening our own venue is now a reality!

“The past two years has been incredibly tough for our industry as a whole and I would like to take this opportunity to thank our investors, my family and our entire team for their dedication and hard work. Our staff at Magheramorne have been and are quite unbelievable in their support.

“I am delighted to be able to celebrate our official opening and I look forward to our next chapter.”

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Click here to read: Magheramorne Estate opens as private hire venue creating 30 jobs

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