EXPERIENCE A TASTE SENSATION IN LEEDS

LEEDS IS A FOODIE’S PARADISE WITH A HOST OF FANTASTIC RESTAURANTS, CAFÉS AND PUBS – SO MAKE SURE YOU BRING A HEALTHY APPETITE

Like any thriving metropolitan city, Leeds offers the hungry visitor everything from fine dining feasts to budget-conscious eats. A range of boundary-pushing chefs have set up restaurants here. Awards abound in the city’s top restaurants, but you don’t have to splash the cash to eat like royalty. Street food is big business in Leeds too, with innovative indies and pubs promising honest Yorkshire grub at fair prices. Peckish? You’d best be.

Follow your taste buds around Leeds and sample endless gastronomic delights. Whether you’re hungry for pub grub, a veggie lunch or something a little extra special, Leeds has it all. Your hardest decision is: what to try first?

Great pubs are a given in Leeds, where a locally brewed pint by the fireplace is always a good idea. However, certain pubs reign supreme when it comes to food. Three’s a Crowd on North Street is a brand-new offering with an everchanging menu of modern British and international food, including a far from ordinary Sunday roast – think rare breed porchetta stuffed with Italian sausage. The Brunswick cooks creative comfort food you won’t be able to resist, from loaded brioche burgers to sriracha fried chicken.

The Midnight Bell on Water Lane, Crowd of Favours on Harper Street and The New Conservatory on Albion Place and The Cross Keys in Holbeck Urban Village are all standout gastropubs. A taste of Yorkshire is always on the menu at Wapentake. Part-pub-part-café and 100 per cent proud, this quirky joint has countless local beers and hearty dishes like Yorkshire pudding burgers to tempt you. If you’re planning a stroll around Roundhay Park, refuel after your walk with pub classics at The Roundhay Fox.

Rustic Decor

Out of the Woods has two cafés in the city – one at Granary Wharf and the other on Water Lane. The rustic decor is the perfect setting in which to enjoy freshly made sandwiches, salads and smoothies.

Many flock to Laynes Espresso for the Grade-A coffee, but this café’s home-cooked fare also makes for a mighty fine brunch stop. Meanwhile, Moose Coffee on Bond Street serves up authentic Canadian and American all-day breakfasts, including stacks of pancakes, waffles and grits.

Perhaps the most beautiful of all Leeds’ eateries is the Tiled Hall Café at Leeds Art Gallery. Sink your teeth into light lunches while surrounded by original marble columns, floor-to-ceiling windows and a barrel-vaulted ceiling adorned in mosaics.

Just Grand! Vintage Tearoom is another characterful café. Patterned tablecloths? Mismatched china? Multiple tiers of crustless finger sarnies and delectable homemade cakes that’d make your nan proud? You betcha.

Leeds’ dining scene is ever-changing. The best way to taste the city’s most delicious trends? By hitting the street food stalls! The concept of Trinity Kitchen has proven to be a big hit. This multi-vendor street food space takes over the top floor of Trinity Leeds shopping centre and rotates six new stalls every eight weeks. One visit you may choose to chomp on Middle Eastern mezze, the next you could be filling up on mac and cheese. There’s also an array of permanent eateries including Vietnamese Pho and the Indian-fusion Rola Wala.

At Belgrave Music Hall & Canteen you can sip on craft beer while taking in great music and comedy. You can also

“WHETHER YOU’RE HUNGRY FOR PUB GRUB, A VEGGIE LUNCH OR SOMETHING A LITTLE EXTRA SPECIAL, LEEDS HAS IT ALL. YOUR HARDEST DECISION IS: WHAT FOOD TO TRY FIRST?” sample some pretty fine street food. In-house pizza slingers Dough Boys produce pizza whole or by the slice, while Patty’s Burgers specialise in dirty burgers, chicken strips and churros.

Kirkgate Market may be a traditional market, but you can get your hands on far more than just fresh produce. Manjit’s Kitchen serves knockout Indian thali plates at bargain prices, The Yorkshire Wrap Company offers roast dinners in a Yorkshire pudding, while Banh & Mee whips up bonafide Vietnamese meals.

One of the more surprising culinary hits of Kirkgate Market is Mr Mackerel. Any number of freshly-grilled meats can go in your Turkish sandwich, but the eponymous mackerel is always a popular choice.

Other street food finds in the city include Falafel Guys on Briggate, for falafel or chicken shawarma wraps and Pocco Sicilian Street Food on Kirkstall Road for pizza, stone-baked sandwiches and arancini.

Leeds’ versatile dining scene caters for all kinds of dietary requirements. For vegetarian diners, Hyde Park Book Club on Headingley Lane is one of the best cafés with not a stitch of meat on the bagel-and-burger heavy menu. There’s loads of vegan options too.

Eat Your Greens on New York Street describes itself as “vegetable-led”. Grocery store by day and restaurant by night, it offers a small but inventive menu crammed with organic goodies. Cantina on Vicar Lane, believed to be Leeds’ first all-vegan café, serves up naughty-but-nice vegan junk food.

Vegan Comfort Food

And if that’s not enough of a splurge, head to Döner Summer on Call Lane and dive into some vegan comfort food. Kebabs, buttermilk fried chick’n and burgers are all on the menu, with cocktails to wash it all down.

The Indian street food at Bundobust is entirely vegetarian and perfect for sharing with friends (apart from the crispy okra fries, which you may prefer to eat all to yourself). Other veggie-friendly favourites include Manjit’s Kitchen, Falafel Guys and Rola Wala.

Gluten-free diners, meanwhile, have a serious treat in store. The Oxford Place is a 100 per cent gluten-free fine dining restaurant in Leeds. That’s right, five-star feasting with none of the risk. Bon appétit.

Fill your boots at the scoff-tastic North Leeds Food Festival in May. Top chefs and suppliers from across the entire Yorkshire region come together in Roundhay Park for a weekend of unfettered feasting, plus cooking demonstrations and family entertainment.

Just up the road from Leeds, the sweeping grounds of Harewood House are the setting for May’s Great British Food Festival. As well as countless foodie stands, there’s a guided foraging walk around the site’s gardens.

Leeds is something of a hub for craft beer and Leeds International Beer Festival is the city’s annual hoppy highlight with hundreds of different brews on offer, alongside street food, at Kirkstall Abbey in September.

Free glass of house wine or bottle of beer if you mention ‘This is Leeds visitor guide’

A truly unique dining experience

Everything about Teppanyaki Leeds defies the ordinary, from our displays of roaring fire to the thrilling teppanyaki performance exhibited by our master chefs.

Sit back and relax as you watch our talented chefs prepare your meal in a uniquely theatrical style. Our teppanyaki dishes are prepared on a traditional, flaming hotplate, where we combine our awe-inspiring performance with masterful talent in order to prepare the most delicious Japanese dishes!

Never tried teppanyaki-style cooking? Sit around our teppan hot plates and watch as our chefs skilfully cook your food in front of you, using their theatrical skills, juggling and flipping and, with a dash of fire, your meal is prepared for you before your very eyes.

A taste of Japan that you will remember…

If gin and rum are more your tipples, then don’t miss the Gin & Rum Festival in June at Royal Armouries Museum. Or, if that’s not enough grog for you, there’s also Leeds Rum Fest in September.

For all the finger-licking fun of a food festival but with less of the diary management, try Chow Down at Temple Arches. Open every weekend throughout the summer season, this outdoor destination is a hub of street food stalls, bars and live entertainers. Book your table in advance, it gets very busy!

TOP-NOTCH RESTAURANTS

Why not slip into your glad rags and get ready for a meal to remember? Leeds’ dining scene sizzles with top restaurants where indulgent dishes are always on the menu.

Situated in a sleek new home on Brewery Place, HOME brings an utterly fresh concept to fine dining. The brainchild of chef Elizabeth Cottam, HOME serves seasonally inspired six, eight or 10-course tasting menus bursting with fantastic regional produce.

Modern but not fussy, booking is essential. Another celebrated chef can be found cooking up a storm in Chef Jono at V&V on New Briggate. Chef Jono Hawthorne brings his playful take on British dining to dishes such as chicken liver mousse with raspberry vinegar jam.

The Man Behind the Curtain is brilliantly berserk and earned Leeds its first Michelin star in a decade back in 2015. Michael O’Hare, the chef behind the plates, specialises in unusual gastronomic creations. The menu doesn’t give much away but the dishes pack real wow-factor. Scallop with tiger milk and plankton focaccia, Iberico pork with egg and anchovy – if you’re looking for an unforgettable culinary experience this is where you’ll find it.

Hidden in Headrow House, Ox Club centres its meals around the wood-fired grill in its open kitchen, while atmospheric basement brasserie Dakota Grill has local produce at its heart. Tattu’s lavish interiors (complete with blossom trees) are just the precursor to its delectable Chinese dishes, while The Swine That Dines puts fresh, unfussy ingredients front and centre. It’s only open three days a week with an ever-adapting menu dependent on the season.

If you’re willing to step beyond Leeds city centre, you have a whole host of fine dining restaurants to choose from. Ilkley is home to the award-winning Box Tree, an upper-crust affair in one of the town’s oldest buildings. An opulent 16th-century manor is home to the Goldsborough Hall restaurant, where the divine European menu showcases techniques both classic and modern.

Or, take a trip to Harrogate for Horto, a prestigious three AA Rosette restaurant inside the ultra-exclusive Rudding Park hotel. The spa town is also home to Paradise at Daleside, where former Michelin star chefs Frances Atkins, John Tullett and Roger Olive create simple, seasonal menus, with excellent vegan and vegetarian choices.

Book for a pre-theatre dinner before a show at Leeds Playhouse. Park Row, Greek Street, Quebec Street, South Parade and East Parade make up Leeds’ financial district and are filled with excellent eateries. Sous Le Nez serves fine French food and wine at a reasonable price, while Gaucho is all about mouthwatering Argentinian steak.

Indulgent Dining

In The Calls area of Leeds, independent Shears Yard combines indulgent dining with casual surroundings. The exposed brick walls lend the restaurant an industrial-chic edge but the contemporary menu is light as a feather.

Just around the corner, Ambiente’s menu is filled with tapas. If you haven’t tried FINT on Great George Street, now’s the time. Many of its Scandi-inspired dishes are also vegan and taste as good as they look.

For top-notch dining with top-of-the-world views, look no further than Crafthouse. Perched on the fifth floor of Trinity Leeds shopping centre, this is a real special occasion spot with stunning British cuisine to boot.

One floor up, Angelica’s wrap-around terrace is an ideal place to sip cocktails while admiring panoramic views over the city’s rooftops. Or, nip to Harvey Nichols’ Fourth Floor Brasserie to dig into quality dishes right next to expansive floor-to-ceiling windows.

It’s easy to eat your way around the world in Leeds. Ibérica is located within a Grade 2-listed former auction house on East Parade and brings authentic Spanish tapas to the spectacular surroundings.

Grab A Slice

Italian cuisine is supremely well-represented with the likes of Stuzzi, Salvo’s and Da Vito all vying for attention. If all you care about is cramming slices of pizza, go Neapolitan at Ecco Pizzeria, Pizza Loco or Rudy’s or try an authentic Roman slice at Lievitoo Street Pizza.

Although there’s no Chinatown in Leeds, you can still find a fantastic variety of Asian cuisine. Wen’s Restaurant on North Street is a family-run Chinese joint that serves outstanding Sichuan cuisine, including xiao long bao.

Sukhothai is the place to head for authentic Thai food, while House of Fu takes you to Japan courtesy of steaming bowls of ramen and aromatic gyoza.

Upscale Sushi Bar Hanamatsuri in Meanwood offers a sublime multi-course omakase menu (meaning you leave it up to the chef to choose what you eat). It’s tiny so make sure you book in advance.

Tharavadu on Mill Hill is a high-end Indian restaurant that specialises in Keralan cuisine. Expect fragrant fish curries and South Indian specials. Contemporary Indian dining awaits at successful local chains Aagrah and Mumtaz.

Alternatively, why not try something a little different at Darvish Restaurant? This traditional Persian tea house has attracted celebrity reviews for its fragrant Iranian dishes.

Last, but by no means least, are two Leeds restaurants that turn eating into an experience. The Brazilian grill, Fazenda, carves succulent meat skewers straight onto your plate alongside a generous selection of help-yourself salads and sides. Flip the card on your table to green when you want more, or to red when the meat sweats kick in. Or, fire up your very own DIY barbecue at Bulgogi Grill, Leeds’ answer to tabletop Korean cooking.

Leeds’ dining scene leaves no appetite unquenched. The city thrums with award-winning restaurants, first-rate gastro pubs and market stalls, each ready to whip you up something special.

From the casual to the upper crust, local Yorkshire produce rules the roost. And by jove, God’s Own Country has never looked so delicious.