The Lunar New Year is just a few short days away- how are you planning to celebrate the Year of the Tiger?
Tuesday 1 February is a date you'll want to have marked in your calendar, regardless of whether you're celebraing the Lunar New Year or not. Also know as the Chinese New Year, the date marks the first day of the the year in the lunar calendar, and as such is a time to celebrate.
Typically, there's a full 16 days of activities to get involved in to 'attract fortune and happiness' for the new year. Leeds, as always, is bringing the best of the new year in with hearty menus, killer cocktails and a whole range of dining options made especially to help you celebrate the Lunar New Year.
Here's our top picks for foodie nights out to enjoy during the Lunar New Year.
Nam Song is bringing in the Lunar New Year with a celebration that puts their customers at the heart of it all. Tết is the Vietnamese Celebration of the New Lunar Year and at this time red envelopes filled with money are given to children to bring good luck, health and prosperity, so Nam Song is giving away over 1,000 red envelopes with prizes inside like free bánh mì and coffee for a whole year, your entire bill for free, money off your next visit or even a free drink. If you ever needed a reason to visit, this is certainly a compelling one.
Monday 31 January - Saturday 6 January. Find out more here.
North Brew Co
Image: The Hoot Leeds
There's events aplenty brewing over at both North Brew venues this year and their Chinese New Year menu is just one of the innovative one-off menus we're excited for. Keeping everything under wraps until the event itself, North Brew Co will be providing Chinese-inspired cocktails, whilst Little Bao Boys will be serving up some specials for the occasion too. To get your hands on the menu, along with a fortune cookie or two, you can visit either their North Brew Taps or Springwell venues.
Friday 4 February - Saturday 5 February. Find out more here.
Celebrating Chinese New Year with traditional cuisine is our favourite hidden Chinese restaurant, Mans Market. Tucked away in the city centre, their authentic menu has always got us wanting more and no doubt their new year menu will be just the same. Expect Cantonese-style spring rolls, citrus sweet and sticky chicken, hot bean tofu, traditional Chinese curry Can Be Ve and a sweet dessert for vanilla nian gao pot. Need any more of a reason to visit? You can get a starter and main course for £22, with a dessert for just an extra fiver.
Friday 4 February - Sunday 6 February. Find out more here.
The Little Yellow Rice Co. will be taking over the Eat Your Greens kitchen to bring a Lunar New Year feast. Served across four courses, the set menu has been curated around classic Nyonya cuisine and bringing Penang flavours to Leeds. Expect Peranakan favourites like Jiu hu Char, stir-fried yam bean with cuttlefish and dried fish; Assam Prawn, Tamarind prawns cooked in a sweet and sour caramelised sauce; Curry Kapitan, a chicken curry with lemongrass, lime leaf, galangal, coconut milk and shrimp paste, as well as vegan specials like Pengat Pisang, banana and kueh in sweet creamy coconut and pandan sauce.
Tattu have ten days of new year celebrations waiting for you, with the inclusion of a unique Year of the Tiger dessert and Red Envelope Gift Cocktail on offer. The sparkling orange-red concoction is topped with a creamy foam, a macaroon with a tiger stamped on top, representing the new year that we will fall into, the Year of the Tiger and a Hong Bao envelope. Guests are invited to open the envelopes in search of a golden ticket with vouchers inside.
Tuesday 1 February - Thursday 10 February. Find out more here.
Lucy & Yak is turning its Sheffield store into a dedicated PreLoved hub for the entire weekend.
If you're all about celebrating second-hand shopping, then this is the event for you.
Since 2023, Lucy & Yak has kept a more than 42,000 Yaks in circulation through its incredible PreLoved scheme.
The concept is simple, customers bring in and return their old Yaks, and once processed receive a money-off voucher to put towards their next purchase. So everyone's a winner, basically.
Images: The Sheff
And don't worry if your old pieces are damaged, as these are lovingly repaired or upcycled by their talented Re:Yak Studio team in Yorkshire before being sold on in-store to find their new homes.
This bank holiday weekend, from Saturday 23 to Monday 25 May, the entire Sheffield store will be transformed with a huge PreLoved section for you to browse.
Images: The Sheff
It's a unique opportunity to shop your favourite second-hand Lucy & Yak pieces, with special one-off items and old gems for you to get your hands on. Get in.
The special event is the latest milestone in Lucy & Yak’s broader commitment to circularity, which also includes its (Im)Perfect sales, a Facebook Marketplace for buying, selling and swapping, and Re:Yak workshops held throughout the year - community sessions that help people mend and customise their clothing.
Images: The Sheff
Lydia Coley, Managing Director at Lucy & Yak said: “We’re so excited to bring the PreLoved Weekender to our stores this May. Lucy & Yak has always been built around community, creativity and doing things a little differently, and PreLoved brings all of that together.
"We're incredibly proud of keeping over 42,000 Yaks in circulation. Every second-hand Yak has a story, and this weekend is about helping those pieces find their next home in a fun way”
So if you're looking for a fresh new colourful wardrobe for the summer, get yourself to Lucy & Yak this weekend to shop smart.
An Italian-American ‘paninoteca’ and diner serving stacked subs has opened in Leeds
Clementine Hall
The team behind Stuzzi - one of Leeds’ best-loved Italian restaurants - have opened up a brand-new sandwich shop.
Introducing La Grassa, the new concept from Stuzzi Leeds co-founders Jimbob Phillips and Brett Lee, that just a few weeks ago opened up inside Amity Brew Co. over in Farsley.
La Grassa is a new Italian-American ‘Paninoteca’ and diner concept, where you can get your hands on paninos filled with house-made meats, cheeses and glossy sauces. But be warned, your hands may get a bit messy whilst doing so.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
They're open afternoon and evening, so whether you fancy a quick sandwich whilst exploring Sunny Bank Mills or tucking into some hearty grub alongside a few pints from the brewery, they've got you covered.
Sandwich wise you can opt for a 'Hero' which is your classic semolina sub stuffed with either grilled pork and greens, pork and veal meatballs or crispy buttermilk chicken tossed in a creamy Caesar salad.
Or you can get your sub grilled and pressed with fillings like dry aged beef and peppers or your classic grilled cheese with hot honey.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
They've also got potato rolls filled with very naughty deep fried mozzarella, basil pesto and marinara sauce. One thing's for certain, you won't leave here hungry.
If you're after something sweet they've got a selection of soft serve on the menu, perfect for soaking in the sunshine this summer.
If you don't fancy a sandwich you can get the fried mozz and the meatballs on their own, and on Sundays the menu gets a special roast revamp where all subs come with crispy, herby potatoes. Yum.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
This is a great addition to Leeds and it seems like you lot are loving it as much as we do, with the space being full to the brim with hungry punters ever since they opened their doors back in March.
So get yourself to Amity for a few pints and check out the deliciousness that La Grassa has to offer. Bellissimo.
Sophie Smith -
27th January 2022 
