Having read the reviews I was brimming over with excitement to visit this little diamond. The food…read moresounded incredible, the building a treasure, and the staff a delight. As is sometimes the case, reading so many high reviews, your expectations can be raised beyond the achievable and so I was hoping for magic. We mightn't have found magic, but what we did find was a truly delightful pub in the midst of Hunslet.
Let me start by attempting to paint the picture of just how gorgeous the architecture is. So bizarre is it to see such an amazing building in the midst of some rather droll redbrick housing estate, that it almost beggars belief. I found it fascinating - was Hunslet previously some kind of high end area of Leeds back in its day? How did this gem come about? Fortunately, the pub has kept various historical documents as to its origins, some of which are in a display cabinet detailing the story, a lot of which are used to decorate this fabulous structure.
The pub is built in traditional fashion, with a long hallway as the entry, bar and tap room to the left, snugs and little nooks to the right. It reminds me of The Grove, both delightful anachronisms, and worth visiting to gaze upon. It's also now a Grade II* listed building.
We were welcomed in, and I keenly asked about the, now Yelp-infamous, lunch. We were given a somewhat cryptic response - it wasn't a no, but it wasn't a yes. It wasn't really even a maybe! Apparently they'd a group booking so might not have been able to accommodate, so we ordered drinks, after hearing that is was possible potentially in an hour or so. Being now a Leeds Brewery owned spot, there's plenty of decent ale to keep you busy, whilst you have a gander and a natter.
Another of our group bravely decided to ask about lunch after about half an hour, and the happy news was that they'd discovered some veg from their stores, so we could indeed dine that afternoon! I'm guessing, being so far out, that Sundays aren't always a busy affair - my advice might be to ring ahead and plan the visit, making sure they stock up before! After working out what the vegetarian in the party could eat (all the roast veg, and a veggie lasagne as the main part - random but suitable!) we ordered more drinks whilst we waited. Everyone was delighted that veggie gravy was also available.
Soon enough, four stacked plates arrived before our eyes, and we tucked in. It's a proper home cooked vibe, so don't expect the likes of fine dining, but where it lacked in that area it made up for it in spades by being so damned hearty and cheap. I believe it was about six quid for a sizeable plate. The gravy, I thought, was delicious and the Yorkshire pud really tasty. I could have had several more! As much as there were quirks to the afternoon, the staff were all very lovely, and really helpful - especially since we mightn't have been fed at all that afternoon!
There's nothing like a decent ale, a post-dinner game of random scrabble, a gorgeous pub, and an afternoon of laughter so for that I'm definitely a fan. I really want to come back and try the food again, especially as others have loved it so, so watch this space for an update. Another interesting thing would be to sink a few on an eve, and check out the vibe on a weekend. We'll see! Give them a visit, it's a beaut.
