Bills restaurant Leeds

A new place in Leeds has opened once again, well quite a lot has been opening (as per-usual) and as always I decided to check things out. 

One of the latest addition to my favourite city, has come in the form of Bill's restaurant, serving up classic comforting home dishes from breakfast through to bed time. Now I really really wanted to check this place out for brunch as I have heard their blueberry pancakes are amazing, however as we all know I'm not a morning person and despite breakfast been served until 1pm on a weekend, it was still quite frankly too early for me to function (although the lure of pancakes was tempting), so a nice evening Sunday meal it had to be. 

Bill's restaurant it self is located in the city centre of Leeds on Albion Place near to the popular Trinity shopping centre. The building is such a great location and really emphasised the charming, rustic, inviting nature of the restaurant. 

Although there are no pictures of the interior on my blog (because I don't want to look too weird photographing when people are eating) you will just have to trust me on how charming and lovely this place is. 

In all honesty despite now been won over and ready to rave about this place, the menu isn't really my kind of menu. Although I was swayed initially by the breakfast/brunch, the menu didn't wow me on first glance, and the dishes are all "kinda classics"  or as I think of it, commonly found dishes on most generic menus. With starters including the likes of, crab cakes, soup, squid, bruchetta and mains including fish pie, burgers, chicken, ribs, salads and steaks. Ohh and fish finger sandwiches, because there cool and secretly we all love them (sarcasm not intended there). I wasn't really expecting anything that good in all honesty.

Perusing what seemed a little like a dull menu for starers, I did come across the halloumi salad (grilled halloumi, with quinola, and lentin sprout salad, a little red chilli, with a caper, mustard and  honey dressing). Obviously I can be won over easily by cheese. 

My friend ordered the crab, chilli and prawn cakes (served with baby gem lettuce, mango and spring onion salad). 

Now as my friend and I waited for out starters to arrive, my friend (who's not really an adventurous eater) did point out one thing that annoyed here with the menu. 

Now this certainly doesn't annoy me, not was it aimed at Bill's, this is mere just something she took note of, but she point out the use of trendy food. You all know what I mean. Foods starting to become trendy. I'm sure it wasn't just me last January sprinkling chai seeds on my cereal like a wannabe health freak, or upgrading my cous cous to bulgur wheat, FYI bulgur wheat is so last season, we're now all about quinola. However as she was pointing out the use of...basically quinola (I've just had to scan the menu again to make this point worth now typing out a full paragraph and I'm yet to spot another) ohh and KALE CRISPS. It was defiantly the kale which set her of. It kind of made me think....

the menu is actually really nice. It's not really that dull, it a nice well rounded menu which would suit a range of customers, with a slightly modernised version of everyone's favourite classics. It's also ideal for those (annoying) indecisive friends, or the ones who aren't that adventurous as there's food to suit everyone yet without been disappointing to the foodies.

The halloumi was actually amazing. I mean I'm never going to fault a plate of cheese but it was a really nice dish and the "trendy salad" complimented it nicely. The honey and mustard dressing was a little too sweet and could of done with less honey more mustard but I certainly finished my plate. 

My friend stated she really enjoyed the crab cakes and really liked the mango salad, she said it worked well and I can only really judge this by the fact she cleaned the plate. 

For the main course, as I said "classic food" seems dull to me so nothing on the menu stood out. I never order this type of (could cook this at home) kinda, food as I kind of see this as a wasted opportunity to try something new in a restaurant, so in the end I choose the Bill's lamb koftas (coated in toasted sesame sea salt pan fried and served with hummus, tzatziki, cucumber, baby gem lettuce, radish coriander and mint salad, picked red onions and warm piadina bread). Despite not been too excited originally by my choice, it was nice and I really enjoyed it. The lamb was cooked nice, the salad was refreshing and the bread warm. My only moaning point was there could have been more tzatziki as in end I was basically eating bread on it's own. Although I'm sure had I of asked for some more this wouldn't have been a problem. 

My friend who again is the opposite to me in the food world, choose the BBQ pork ribs (slow cooked with bbq sauce, with cream slaw and skin on fries). Again I can't comment too much on taste on other than pinching a few chips, but the meat fell clean of the bone and again an empty plate. 

Over all I'm actually really converted to Bill's. The food is all cooked well, the restaurant has a charming character and so what if there's no impressive slightly out there crazy food on the menu (other than kale chips and quniola). The menu is full of dishes we all know and love. It suits the fussiest of eaters, the family gatherings, the lunches with friends and I'm sure a cute little date. I can defiantly say the next time I'm out shopping and want to grab some lunch, or am suggesting a place to eat for friends and colleges Bill's will be at the top of my recommendations, as you cant really go wrong. 

SAMMIE

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The Liquorist, Greek Street, Leeds | Review

As soon as a new restaurant opens in Leeds, I always get a little excited. Last week I got the chance to visit The Liquorist, located on Greek Street in the location of what was previously the Living Room. A stylish cocktail and eatery. 

I was a little apprehensive the refurbishment was going to be minimal and the place would feel exactly like the Living Room. However the transformation is somewhat brilliant. With the feel of an exquisite country summer house, the Liquorist is the perfect venue for sipping cocktails and the perfect hang out for "ladies who lunch". 

I started the afternoon with the  English Country Garden cocktail £8.15. A very refreshing and well made drink of Hendricks Gin, Elderflower liquor muddled with fresh cucumber, lime and mint served with apple juice over ice. 

To start with I choose the oven baked creamy blue mushroom to start with £4.95. Now in all the restaurants I have reviewed for my blog I have never yet found a dish inedible, but this unfortunately was a badly thought out dish and well I simply couldn't eat it. 

The mushroom was watery, the chives in the dish over powered any taste of blue cheese and there was a lot of raw onion in the filling (not what the menu stated) I personally can't stand raw onion. Basically a watery mushroom filled with cream cheese onion and chive, no taste of blue cheese. In addition presenting the mushroom in a shallow dish made the starter hard to cut to eat. The presentation of basically adding 3 cherry tomatoes and some rocket on top was a little bizarre and didn't go. 

My friend ordered the battered prawns £5.45 which seemed a much better choice and I was told these were pretty nice. 

For the main course I opted for the smoked haddock fish cakes £8.95 which were headed on the menu under the salad options. First impressions the portion size was huge, it was far from refined and not something I would of expected from a restaurant serving up classy cocktails, a place clearly aimed at a more sophisticated audience. Quite frankly I've seen more refinement in Weatherspoons. 

Since the meal was headed under salad, I was expecting something far better than un-dressed lettuce, tomato and spring onion in two heaps on the plate. The fish cakes however tasted pleasant but would of benefited from more seasoning. In addition to the two mounds of salad, the two giant fish cakes the meal also came served with a form of apple salad. My only guess as to why this was is someone cooking the meal thought how can we make this look a little fancy and unusual...I know lets make a salad from apple by adding some dressing, to well slices of apple. 

As if the meal wasn't large enough then out come a portion of free chips. Now Who could complain at free chips, well "skin on fries" but there was no need at all to overwhelm me with more food. 

My friend choose the ribs. Again presentation was lacking but these did actually look good. The meat fell clean of the bone, so for slow cooked ribs these couldn't really be faulted. Again served with skin of fries but this worked with this main to help mop up all the sticky BBQ sauce.  

Desert was a redeeming factor for me. We were recommend the Cherry Pie £4.25 by the waiter and the desert was really good.  Crumbly sweet pastry, plump juicy cherry's and melting ice cream sat on top. 

We ended the meal with a round of coffee. Well I say coffee, I had an espresso Martini £7.95 and Jess choose one of the more unusual and exciting looking choices of chocolate orange hottie £4.35 (hot chocolate and orange liquor topped with marshmallow and cream). Despite my criticisms of the food the cocktails seriously can not be faulted. 

Now I didn't drink all these cocktails during the meal. I had previously been to the launch night the week before so had a chance to try a mix of drinks from the menu. 

Passion fruit bellini £9.15 

Rock tail £8.15 (Vodka, Red bull, fresh lime juice, with strawberry and passion fruit puree, served long) plenty of alchol for your money, a strong cocktail with a passion fruit after taste. 

Lemon meringue pie - £8.15 (lemoncello, absolute citron, vanilla sugar syrup, lemon juice, topped with flamed egg white and vanilla foam). An all round amazing and flamboyant cocktail tasting exactly like a comforting piece of lemon meringue pie. 

Strawberry Bellini £9.15

Peanut butter & Jelly Martini £8.15 (Raspberry vodka, raspberry liquor, hazelnut liquor, milk & Cream, shaken with peanut butter and topped with caramel popcorn).

Defiantly a desert cocktail, containing two of my favourite liquors chambord and frangelico I was simply in cocktail heaven. I would say this tasted more like a jammy dodger than anything else but simply delicious.  

SAMMIE

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*Meal and drinks provided free of charge in exchange for my honest review*