The Ilkley Food and Drink Festival will return to East Holmes Field for a celebration of international food, independent drink, live music, arts and charity.
After attracting a whopping 20,000 attendees to the quaint spa town of Ilkley over the past two years, organisers promise that this year's festival will be bigger and better than ever before.
Taking place from Saturday 11 - Sunday 12 June 2023, visitors can expect an impressive array of street food venders, bars, fine artisan markets, live cooking demos and a whole lot more.
Take a stroll through the idyllic green fields of East Holmes Field and be greeted with the smells and temptations of delicious food from all over the world.
Image: Ilkley Food and Drink Festival
After tucking into something yummy, why not put your feet up on one of the deck chairs whilst placing an order from one of the eight independent bars which will be quenching people's thirsts all weekend.
Fancy getting in on the action? The Ilkley Food and Drink Festival will be hosting a full Live Chef’s demo stage for the entire weekend. Working with Zest Charity & Leeds Cookery School, you can watch the region’s best chef’s rustle up a storm.
Image: Ilkley Food and Drink Festival
Each chef will be showcasing unique culinary expertise and focusing on a variety of different ingredients and cuisines from around the world.
Of course after being surrounded by such amazing food, you'll definitely want to take some goodies home with you and you can do so by browsing the fine artisan markets shacking up for the weekend. Showcasing some of the best independent producers from across the UK, tuck into a gooey brownie before sampling some cheese and taking your perfect match home with you.
Image: Ilkley Food and Drink Festival
And it doesn't stop there, across the weekend there will be live entertainment, music, children's entertainment and loads of activities to keep you occupied.
The festival's charity partner is Mind in Bradford who they have already raised over £65,000 for over the past two years. They'll be collecting donations through ticket sales as well as fun activities and competitions taking place over the weekend.
Early bird tickets are available now for just £6 each including booking fee, so if you're thinking of going then save yourself a few quid and book now via their website.
A new cocktail bar is coming to Leeds city centre.
If you know a thing or two about cocktails, or just drinks in general, then you're going to be very excited about this news.
The very talented team behind Roland's on Call Lane and The Domino Club, just to name a few, are setting their sites on a brand-new venture.
Introducing Paper Plane, an intimate new cocktail bar that will be taking over the old Casa site in the city's beautiful Grand Arcade.
Paper Plane will be inspired by the glamour of 1970s air travel and will be a vinyl-only listening bar, serving a world-inspired cocktail menu alongside a carefully curated whisky collection.
The space will be lovely and intimate, with around just 40 covers, designed to transport guests somewhere completely different from the minute they step foot through the door.
And what a location too, joining a whole host of fantastic independents in the arcade such as Alfonso's Deli, Stuzzi and Sonder.
For now, we don't know many more details about the project, but we already know it's going to be exceptional cas anything these guys do turns to gold.
Not only has Roland's been consistently one of the busiest bars on Call Lane since they opened back in 2014, but The Domino Club was recently crowned one of the best cocktail bars in the world. Now that is some accolade worth shouting about.
We'll keep you updated with Paper Plane's progress, but Roland's have stated that the site is hoping to open this coming autumn. So we really don't have long to wait.
Big name restaurant closes Leeds city centre site after seven years
Clementine Hall
A popular restaurant chain has closed permanently in Leeds city centre.
Popular pizzeria Franco Manca has closed its Leeds restaurant.
The chain was famed for its relaxed atmosphere, quick service and affordable sourdough Neapolitan pizzas that were on offer for as little as a fiver.
The chain occupied the site on the outskirts of Trinity Shopping Centre on Trinity Street, next door to Itsu and overlooking the back entrance of Marks and Spencer.
Hoardings have now gone up, signifying the site is now empty and Franco Manca has permanently closed.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
This can also be seen on Google when searching for the restaurant branch.
It was announced earlier this year that a number of Franco Manca's restaurants would be closing across the country.
This was down to a reconstructing plan approved by creditors for the chain. The brand said it had been knocked by “disproportionately high” UK taxes and a lack of business rates relief for hospitality.
Marcel Khan, chief executive of parent firm Fulham Shore, said at the time: “We are grateful for the support shown by our creditors today.
“Franco Manca is a fantastic brand with a strong heritage and loyal customer base. With this agreement in place, we will put the business back on a firm footing and press ahead with strengthening our customer offer and performance.”
The Leeds brand was not included in the initial list of restaurant closing, but it seems further closures were made.
Clementine Hall -
17th February 2023 
