Feeling virtuous in Leeds

Create, Leeds

A Christmas dinner special and I am always a bit suspicious about these, generally preferring the usual offering - Christmas is not just a time for goodwill to all men, but to all menus. Restaurateurs take advantage of this shamelessly, it seems to me.

On this occasion I was happily surprised. I have to say that this was one of the most pleasant and enjoyable dining experiences I have had in Leeds for years.  In fact, it was one of the most enjoyable full stop – this little place would hold its own easily in the capital for the quality of its food, though perhaps it would be sneered at for its lack of sophistication. And it is none the worse for that. As a Yorkshirewoman, there is no way that I am going to pay extra for something as intangible and downright poncy as sophistication in its own right. It needs to have value added, which is to say, bells, whistles, posh décor and free stuff like amuse bouches.

The latter were in short supply at Create but the mainstream stuff on offer was just the ticket. The food was described succinctly and without frills. Five of us sat down to eat and every single one was happy – not a single complaint on the table. Soup was creamy, mushroomy, chestnutty – Christmassy! Then I had duck breast, which can be hit and miss (over or under cooked) but was pink perfection, moist, deeply flavoured, enough to make a veggie faint. But rested to a T – no tell-tale red juices (aka blood) leaking out onto the plate to soggify the wonderful fat chips, real potato crisply and perfectly cooked. Plates were beautifully dressed  and not overloaded but portions were perfect . I pigged out on the side dishes (sumptuous pureed root vegetables were irresistible) and couldn’t manage a pud on my own but extra spoons were supplied for scavengers to raid the plates of friends (who are still, amazingly, on speaking terms). The pudding plates tasted simply sooper and looked a treat, from old-fashioned ice-creamy sundaes to creamy flan - which tasted as good as it looked. 

Choices on the Christmas menu were limited but staff were happy to allow mix and match with the a la carte. We went in feeling virtuous and charitable, but came out feeling as though we had definitely had the best of the bargain.

Verdict: value for money 8/10 service 8/10 quality of food 8/10

They’ve got guts, these Loiners….(but are they eating them?)

Red Chilli, Leeds

A Loiner is someone from Leeds. Bet you didn’t know that! And if you don’t know about the small but growing restaurant chain that is Red Chilli, now is the time to find out.

Red Chilli is a Chinese restaurants full of Chinese people so you know it’s the real thing. You also know it’s the real thing when you read the menu and it makes the exponents of “nose to tail eating” look like a bunch of wusses.

Forget kidneys or pig’s trotters - this is the real, real thing. Stir-fried pig’s intestine? How many would you like? Five-spice pig’s head is another option, or if you are a fan of surf and turf, you could go for the shredded chicken with jellyfish and spring onion.

For red meat eaters, there’s a stew of sliced ox heart, ox tongue, ox tripe, and “Pork’s Blood” (sic) with beansprouts. So there’s one of your five a day. And four of your worst nightmares. I’m never quite sure whether frog’s legs count as meat or fish but Big Grandma might know – her chilli sauce is all over them on the “home-style” dishes section. There’s not much for vegetarians on the menu but they could try the black fungus with spring onion and garlic. (They could, but I doubt that they will.)

I’m a bit worried about Big Grandma now that I’ve taken her name in vain but at least she won’t know who I am – there were seven of us eating there on Saturday evening and the place was buzzing. We had the crispy duck with pancakes for starters along with some very slippery pork dumplings which were gingery and moreish.

For the mains, we all failed to go the whole hog and copped out by ordering the less scary stuff. Sliced pork belly with chilli was paper-thin pork, all the fat rendered out, deliciously spicy and not at all what we expected – I had imagined an unctuous mass of braised belly in a soupy sauce, but this was even better. A bowl of sliced beef fillet crispy fried in Cantonese sauce was possibly the best dish on the table, the texture of the meat satisfyingly crunchy, with slices of red and green pepper providing a counterpoint. Stir-fried mutton with spring onion was tender and with a depth of flavour which stood up well to the robust saucing.

A bowl of sliced duck with sliced leeks in hoisin sauce was good but not up to the standard of the other dishes (and we chose badly in ordering it, having had the hoisin with duck for a starter) whilst another of chicken was unremarkable.

Portions were generous, even for side dishes such as the soft noodles with beansprouts, and a dish of bok choy (which was slippery enough for a piece to shoot out of the grip of my chopsticks and fly sideways to the floor).

Utterly sated, we passed on the offer of pudding but some of us descended like locusts on the plate of orange segments offered as a (free) palate-cleanser.

Abstention from alcohol is always rewarded by a surprisingly small bill, and tonight was no exception. After several pints of beer in a couple of Leeds city centre pubs, we were all happy to stick with either Chinese tea or water. Consequently, the bill came in at just under £100 for six adults and a very well-behaved child, excluding the tip. Which was generous, like the portions....

Verdict: value for money - 10/10; service - 8/10; quality of food - 8/10.

Kendell's Bistro, Leeds

23 July 2008

Tucked away down a littered sidestreet behind the costume hire department of the West Yorkshire Playhouse is Kendell's Bistro. Formerly a Tex-Mex called the Cactus Lounge, the semi-basement space is dark but fortunately no prickly pears remain to punctuate the penumbra. Instead are dark wood tables with an assortment of chairs (apparently Leeds diners like their comfort and complained about the original smart but hard seats), and a view into the kitchen where the eponymous Steve Kendell can be seen labouring over a hot stove.
There is history behind Kendell's, and those old enough to remember Paris in Horsforth (as opposed to the other, less well-known one across the Manche) will know that Steve cooked there, and competently too. This place has an air of the old Paris, with enormous blackboards detailing the set pre-theatre menu and a list of a la carte starters and mains, all in French. Steve's girlfriend does front of house very charmingly and apologies for the spelling mistakes on the blackboards which have been professionally written - inexplicably, by a Chinese English teacher.
Quite a few of the most toothsome sounding mains, disappointingly, have 'sold out' written next to them, despite the fact that it is only 6.30 p.m. on a Wednesday evening.
As one of our number loudly proclaims her right to a bus pass, we agree to eat from the set pre-theatre, menu which is no hardship. It is a Girl's night though we are thin on the ground as one of us has moved to France, another to Scotland and one has texted to say she has a bad foot and will be bathing it in gin and tonic for the night. So the only Girls around are French Spice and Old Spice (who hopefully will not be reading this or long-term friendships will be tested).
Meanwhile Charming Girlfriend brings us hot bread "straight from the oven" which is French but not French, because whilst the crust is wonderfully crispy and hard, the interior is moist and steamy. It does not reach the benchmark set by the Goods Shed but I never expect to eat the like of that again.
I opt for the Potage Lyonnais, which arrives in one of those tiny white porcelain tureen, very hot with gruyere still bubbling on top. It is perfect, the onions having that melting consistency that comes from caramelisation followed by long cooking. I wipe the bowl out with the warm home-made bread and look sadly into the empty depths. Over the table, a slice of pate is being devoured so quickly that I miss my chance of getting a taste. Elsewhere diners are tucking into thin slices of rosy smoked salmon in dill sauce, which is the replacement for the 'sold out' sardines.
Two of us go for the lamb (could have been chicken in tarragon sauce) and my request for it to be served pink is smilingly noted - no cheffy tantrums here. Old Spice chooses tomato tart which surprisingly (and deliciously she says) is a filo pastry version. The food is presented well but without any irritating affectation. My lamb chump is rare on the inside, beautifully dark on the outside, and the sauce it reclines on has the right depth of red-winy flavour without overpowering the meat - which tastes satisfyingly lamby. We have considered side dishes but are told that vegetables are provided, (a more grasping restaurateur would have let us order them anyway) and we are also given a small dish of rather runny dauphinoise potatoes.
I passed on the pudding (currently being Diet Spice rather than Polyanna) but a pot au chocolat served in a plain white espresso cup and a tarte au citron were both pronounced to be paragons of their kinds and despatched within nanoseconds. The bill for three of us just topped £60 including a bottle of wine and a couple of aperitifs. Beat that for Yorkshire value.

Verdict: value for money 9/10 service 9/10 quality of food 9/10