One of the UK's best cocktail bars is hosting a sandwich kitchen with a unique menu of simple, but wholesome dishes that have been completely reinvented.
Beloved Roland's was recently placed in the prestigious list of 'Top 50 cocktail bars in the UK', but the bar has long been a favourite for Leeds locals.
The cocktail bar effortlessly fuses laid-back drinking with quality ingredients, killer cocktails and an incredible sun-trapped beer garden on the rooftop: there really isn't anything else quite like it in Leeds.
Whilst many frequent here for the inside-knowledge on Margaritas, or want to sample the award-winning drinks menu, the kitchen here is quickly becoming a stand-alone reason to head over to the Call Lane watering hole.
Roland's is one of the UK's top 50 cocktail bars. / Image: The Hoot Leeds
Taking over the kitchen here is Don't Feed The Dog: a kitchen leading the 'sandwich revolution' with a small, but carefully considered menu of hoagies, subs and rolls.
Three sandwiches and four small plates: that's all they need to keep you coming back.
The sarnies here couldn't be further from your boring ham and margarine combos: served with seemingly endless toppings, the flavours are unique blends you're unlikely to have heard of before.
Mushroom Bahn Mi Sandwich. / Image: The Hoot Leeds
Take the Mushroom Bahn Mi for instance, the vegan delight is made up of crispy fried oyster mushrooms with peanut butter, pickled daikon, carrots, fresh mint, fresh coriander, fresh chilli, peanuts and Sriracha mayo- delish.
The meaty alternatives are just as flavoursome: the Buffalo Chicken Sub comes with Panko crumb chicken breast, Franks hot sauce, blue cheese sauce, shredded lettuce and pickled: a simple but delectable fusion of classic sandwich toppings.
The Bunga Bunga is the only remaining sarnie and comes with a serious dedication to the Italian foodie scene. Think Italian cured meats, mozzarella cheese, Guardinera, shredded romain lettuce, cheese crack, drizzled with mayo.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Whilst Don't Feed The Dog is known for its standout sandwich selections, the side dishes deserve their own bragging rights.
There's even more Korean-style fried oyster mushrooms served without the slices of bread, with a dipping vegan hot sauce, as well as 15 hour cooked chips: which come as wafer thin layers of potato pressed with butter then cut into fat chips.
Served with a sage and parsley salsa verde, these carbs sit perfectly alongside the wackier options like deep-fried olives stuffed with oregano cream cheese.
Korean-style fried oyster mushrooms / Image: The Hoot Leeds
If that's not enough: there's breaded black pudding served with mustard mayo. Named black pudding bonbons, these tiny balls of meat are unlikely to be found on any other menu around Leeds- but that doesn't mean that they shouldn't be.
Served Wednesday - Sunday, serious sandwich conesseuirs and casual foodies alike will be obsessed with this one.
To get your hands on a hoagie, sub, roll or test out the sides, Don't Feed The Dog can be found inside Roland's five days a week until their stock runs out. Alternatively, you can preorder your sarnies to guarantee yourself a sarnie on the Don't Feed The Dog website.
Feature Image- The Hoot Leeds
Eats
A Leeds icon has been reborn as The Smithfield opens in former The Reliance site
The Smithfield is finally here - and we're pleased to report that it's every bit as special as you were hoping.
This newcomer to Leeds has taken over the site that was home to The Reliance for more than two decades.
The team's transformation of the site started with a paint job - probably the most-talked-about paint job in the city - taking the site's exterior back to its memorable dark red.
That move immediately won over fans of The Reliance, with one person writing: "Seems the team here held the Relly in high regard and rightly so! Hopefully they can recapture some of its magic."
But the efforts to recapture the essence of the iconic old venue go way beyond that.
The Smithfield, a collaboration between Crooked Brewing and Chef James Donovan, is setting out to mix up relaxed hospitality with simple dining.
It's all about connection - to seasonal food, to the heritage of the building, and to the community that will make connections here.
Co-founder Steve Dawson outside The SmithfieldThe Reliance has been reborn as The SmithfieldWayward WinesThe dining room
If you're wondering what sort of things will be on the table, allow us to enlighten you.
There are sharing plates like grilled leeks on romesco, pigs head croquettes (a must-order), and whipped cods roe with radishes, all served on charming mismatched plates.
The bigger dishes include a comically massive pie for sharing, packed with chicken, leek, and tarragon. It's a mighty thing, especially paired with their crispy-edged chips.
You can also order a whole wild Cornish seabass for a real feast, or a fantastic beef sirloin with wild garlic butter.
There's a fantastic selection of natural wines from Wayward Wines, as well as (unsurprisingly) great beers.
Steak, pie, and charred leeksA spread of the plates at The SmithfieldSticky toffee puddingThe Smithfield has taken over the old The ReliancePigs head croquettes with gribicheThe chicken and tarragon sharing pieA sharing pie and chips at The SmithfieldBeef sirloin with wild garlic butter, and purple sprouting broccoli with ricotta and mintWild Cornish seabass with kohlrabi, fennel, and chervil - plus an orange wine from Wayward WinesThe Smithfield is now open
Steve Dawson, co-founder of Crooked Brewing, and his business partner chef James Donovan, were drawn to the old The Reliance site and are seizing the opportunity to contribute to the area's dining legacy.
While Steve's focus is on creating a social meeting point, James will focus on the casual, social dining, taking inspiration from the building's reputation as a cutting-edge gastro pub.
They'll be sourcing seasonally and locally, with menus that will change with the seasons.
The space itself inside is still familiar - those huge windows are the stars of the show, with the bar still standing centrally, while the dining room at the back is stripped-back and simple overlooking the open kitchen.
It's very early days for The Smithfield - they're just out of their soft launch period and gearing up for their first 'proper' weekend.
On their soft launch period, they wrote: "We were so grateful to welcome friends, neighbours, and the Leeds hospitality community to The Smithfield. Seeing the bar and dining room full after weeks of cleaning, painting, and graft has truly made it all worth it.
"A huge thank you to everyone who came along, showed their support, and has made this journey possible. Not least the Kitchen and bar teams, whose incredible service has kept the plates coming and the drinks flowing."
We feel pretty confident in saying Leeds will be very proud to have The Smithfield in our city.
In pictures – Mexican restaurant Madre opens up in Leeds at last
Daisy Jackson
Madre is one of those few restaurants that has been making us jealous of Manchester for years - but finally, it’s Leeds’ turn.
A couple of months after the launch of Salon Madre, a colourful pool hall and taqueria, it’s time for Leeds to welcome its sister restaurant.
Madre will open its doors on Wellington Place this week, promising to educate us all in the art of ‘sobremesa’, which means to linger at the table long after the meal is over.
And trust us, after popping in for a sneak peek today, you won’t be in a rush to leave this place.
The unit has been totally transformed by the Madre team - it’s all jagged angles on the tables and soft curves on the walls, with a colour palette that goes all the way from deep terracotta to neon green.
From an open kitchen you can see the team constructing tacos and piling oysters with jalapeño mignonette and salsa brava.
The menu is split neatly into four sections - snacks (elote, wings, Caesar salad and guac); raw (oysters, tuna tostadas, and aguachile); tacos (including birria); and parilla (wood-fired dishes like BBQ octopus and slow cooked lamb breast).
Click through the gallery below to see inside Madre Leeds
Madre LeedsA selection of the Madre Leeds menuDishes at Madre in LeedsMargaritas are a mustBeef birria tacosFire-roasted mushrooms with egg yolkMadre opens in Leeds this weekBone marrowMadre on Wellington PlaceOysters with salsa
Pull up a seat at a tile-topped table and you can expect to dig into everything from rich Oaxacan-inspired moles and salsas to Baja-style mariscos and Sonoran grilled meats.
Pop down on a Tuesday and you can take advantage of Madre’s two-for-one taco deal - we can’t really think of a better evening than tucking into dinner at Madre before heading across the road for happy hour margs and a game of pool at Salon Madre.
Madre is brought to the city by the teams behind London’s famous Breddos Tacos and esteemed Liverpudlian eatery Belzan.
Sophie Smith -
18th April 2022 
