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‘Dear Stranger’ – The handwritten love letter to Leeds penned by a travelling Yorkshireman
"This moment showed me what kind of city Leeds is, a city crowded with strangers who don’t want to see another fall. A city full of souls who silently care."
A handwritten love letter to Leeds penned by a travelling Yorkshireman has lifted locals' spirits after being spotted on a street in the city centre.
The letter, titled ‘Dear Stranger,’ is brimming with kindness and positivity for the city and the people who make it the special place that it is - calling Leeds 'a city full of souls who silently care.'
Written by author and Yorkshire-born lad Jay Ventress, the heartwarming note has been bringing a smile to the faces of passers-by after appearing on Boar Lane this week.
Jay's letter, which has been taped to a post box on Boar Lane, reads: "Dear Stranger, My name’s Jay. I’m a travelling writer wandering from city to city, country to country, posting letters like these across the walls with the hope to spark a fire in a stranger’s eye.
"Now I’m in Leeds I’m talking to you. I was posting my letters one week ago, it was a windy evening.
"I was carrying my letters, between my arm, and on this posting session I tripped, dropped my letters and out they blew across the sidewalk. At least fifty of them. Off they went, with the wind, never expecting to see them again.
"But to my surprise, the six random strangers around me dispersed up the street to recover my letters, all fifty of them.
"The moment took my breath away, it reminded me how beauty often has a strange way of showing itself in times of misfortune.
“You can’t see stars in the sunlight. And this moment showed me what kind of city Leeds is, a city crowded with strangers who don’t want to see another fall. A city full of souls who silently care.
"And you, reading my letter, are another one of those souls. Thank you.
"Acts like these prove humanity is alive in this town, the media might make out the world to be a soulless void, but if we open our eyes to the beauty around us, we’ll find traces of humanity burning bright and loud.
“Thank you for reading, you lovely human. Rock and Roll! -Jay. "
The 26-year-old Yorkshireman's letter writing campaign first began as a coping mechanism at the start of the pandemic, because, as he says himself, “at the time everything felt dark, I was a Brit trapped in Australia, so to brighten up my life I began writing little letters to make a stranger smile to make me smile.”
To date, his letters have spread far and wide across the globe - appearing in the UK, Belgium, Australia, and the United States of America.
They have been spotted in both Leeds and Manchester – with one person in the north west even taking the time to post a letter back in response.
In a post shared to Jay’s Instagram of different responses from around the world, one like-minded Brit wrote: “Hi! I hope you are well! I saw your note in Manchester today, and I just wanted to share how touching I found it.
“As someone who has also struggled in the past, I keep a long notes list in my phone of ‘moments of unsaid love’ that I witness to remind myself of how much around us goes unnoticed.
“It was so lovely to read something from someone likeminded, and I saw your note just when I needed to be reminded myself. Thank you again, I hope you have a lovely day Jay!”
The 26-year-old letter writer originally hails from Yorkshire, but moved to Manchester as a teenager and worked in the city before deciding to travel the world four years ago.
This spot in the city is baking up some weird and wonderful creations.
But you'll have to act fast if you want to get your hands on them, as it's only open one day a week for all your doughy desires.
Introducing Fold, a focaccia-focused bakery by the talented team behind The Cheesy Living Co.
Rewind to this time last year and with three restaurants flourishing across Leeds, the team needed a space to bake all their bread and sweet treats in-house to supply to sites.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
And this is where Fold came in, located underneath the arches of Brussels Street on the outskirts of the city centre - it may take a while to find this spot but once you have, it'll be worth it.
And they're making some of the most inventive bakes that we've seen.
Of course there'll always be a focaccia on offer, with flavours ranging from crispy chilli oil, sesame and spring onion to kimchi, cheese and pistachio.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
And it's not just savoury focaccia, you'll even find gooey chocolate and banana focaccia as well as Biscoff waffle focaccia....yep, seriously.
Elsewhere they specialise in gigantic footlong cheese twists with more crispy bits than soft, as well as chorizo and cheese stuffed sausage rolls and a range of freshly baked bagels for you to go home and smear in your cream cheese of choice.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Some seriously spectacular specials have been the gochujang cookies and the 'pickle roll', basically like a sausage roll but with...pickles.
It seems there's really no boundaries for where these bakes will go, and you can guarantee that every visit will be different than the rest.
Only open on Saturdays from 10am - 1pm, Fold are changing the baking game. Pop in and say hello, you won't be disappointed.
Everything we ate and drank at Dishoom Leeds – one of the city’s hottest new openings
Clementine Hall
From Bombay to Leeds, Dishoom has opened in the city to resounding success.
Look, if you've been in town over the past week then you will have seen the snaking queues forming outside the city's hottest new restaurant - Dishoom.
This is one that's been in the pipeline for quite some time now, known amongst the UK for their all-day Bombay-inspired food and it seems the people of Leeds couldn't wait to tuck in.
But before we delve into the food, let's talk about the space.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Taking over the old Flannels site on Vicar Lane, Dishoom Leeds is nothing short of beautiful.
Dusty pink exteriors welcome you into a huge dining room complete with gold picture frames, baby blue walls and huge arched windows.
They've really thought of every little detail, eve down to the relaxing incense burning on the windowsill.
The menu is large and can seem overwhelming, featuring everything from breakfast naan rolls and small plates and to big sharing curries, but the staff are keen to lend you a helping hand.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Kicking off with a few Dishoom staples like the crunchy, salty okra fries and peppery chilli cheese toast was the perfect start to our meal.
But an absolute must order is the lamb chops, marinated overnight in raw papaya, yoghurt and spices before being blackened on the grill and finished with a thrilling Kashmiri chilli sauce. These will be on our order list every single time.
Elsewhere the charred masala prawns were juicy and perfectly aromatic, whilst smokey gunpowder potatoes served with a yoghurt dip were a perfect respite from the building spices.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
A really special dish which you can only get in Leeds is Malvani Lamb Curry, made using tender lamb leg nestled in a silken gravy of roasted coconut, cardamom, chillies, turmeric and pippali pepper. Served with a heap of golden laccha paratha for dipping and a sharp onion salad alongside, this is as perfect as it gets.
Drinks wise we got their special Dishoom Margarita which is shaken with a tamarind spice as well as the New Permit Room Old Fashioned that uses date liqueur. Both a twist on a classic, and just as delicious as the next.
If the queue doesn't make you want to try out Dishoom then let this be your sign. A fantastic addition to the city, and we'll certainly be back for more.
Georgina Pellant -
9th June 2023 
