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This Leeds bar is hosting a pyjama party to celebrate its third birthday
Think pyjama parties are just for kids? Think again. The Watermark Bar is embracing its inner child - transforming into a huge pillow fort for one night only
Popular neighbourhood bar The Watermark will be transformed into the ultimate pillow fortfor one night only for a pyjama party and it's safe to say we're very excited.
Yes, that's right, the Watermark Bar is offering a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to party in your dressing gown inside their Pillow Fort bar. You absolutely need to be there.
Taking place on Saturday 17 October in honour of its third birthday, the bar has invited guests to join to celebrate three years of making cocktails in Leeds.
Guests are encouraged to dress in their finest pyjamas or kimonos and join in with the festivities. Pillows and dressing gowns are optional.
Located on Cross Belgrave Street, the bar is known locally for its late night kitchen, cocktails, endless selection of spirits and all-around laid-back vibes.
Sharing photos of the last big night in, the bar reminded customers that although they may appear grown up on the outside there are plenty of moments where they embrace the lighter side of running a bar.
For example, one of their bartenders 'occasionally' refuses to serve drinks in glasses. The solution? We think the photos say it all.
A sneak peak of the atmosphere at the Watermark Bar's birthday event / Image: The Watermark Bar
In their notorious tongue-in-cheek manner, Watermark is promising to 'bring it harder than your grans Christmas jigsaw' after missing out on celebrating the second anniversary of their opening in 2020 because of coronavirus restrictions.
A mighty selection of food is served at the Watermark until the early hours and their birthday bash will be no exception.
Taking post-night-out food to a whole new level, their famed chicken and waffle dish just needs to be ordered before 3 am - a sure delight to anyone that usually craves salt after an evening on the town.
The critically acclaimed bar regularly receives five star reviews, described as 'consistently amazing' by their regular customers for its service, food and drinks.
Inspired by the owner's home bar in Beeston, the interior is cosily decorated throughout, complete with classic board games and quirky wall features.
Previous Watermark Bar Events have been a wild success with regulars and newcomers alike / Image: The Watermark Bar
The owners are so excited about their birthday, they will be giving out awards for the best set of pyjamas - and have even invested in new lighting to enhance the pillow fort come house party ambience. A perfect example of the preparation a grown up pyjama party needs.
There couldn't bar more perfectly suited to host a pyjama party in the city centre and we can't wait to see the event in action.
There's another new opening in Farsley - this time an incredibly cool listening bar and cocktail bar.
Tucked away in Sunny Bank Mills, Pardon Me is a bar built around 'music, atmosphere, and detail'.
Bartenders here create well-made cocktails and pour natural wines in front of a wall of vinyl records, while a playlist of hip hop, soul, jazz, funk, deep house, and disco soundtracks your evening.
The stylish space features a considered sound system that's been built around Danley speakers.
Pardon Me has opened with the intention of creating a space where 'sound sits at the centre, and everything else supports it'.
It's been launched by Scott Rapson, who grew up in the Scottish Highlands and fell in love with music around the time of the arrival of hip hop in the early 80s.
He then spent time travelling for raves, and visiting venues like Glasgow’s Sub Club and London’s Plastic People, giving Scott an appreciation for how 'music can shape a room, not just fill it'.
Scott and his partner Laurie have then spent the past three years travelling Europe, visiting listening bars across the continent to shape the foundations of Pardon Me.
Inside Pardon Me in FarsleyCocktails at Pardon Me
They say that sound, look, atmosphere, service and style are treated with equal importance.
Whether it's for coffee during the day, or drinks into the evening, they want Pardon Me to be a place to spend time, looking out across Sunny Bank Mills.
Scott says he's built the bar with the support of family and friends, plus Laurie helping to bring the idea to life, already finding a warm welcome within the Farsley community.
Pardon Me is open now at Sunny Bank Mills in Farsley.
Posh bakery chain Gail’s is finally coming to Yorkshire
Daisy Jackson
Gail's has finally set its sights on Yorkshire for the first time, with a new bakery set to open this year.
It's one of the UK's most famous bakeries, launching in London in the early 1990s to supply restaurants, before opening its first retail site and cafe in Hampstead in 2005.
Gail's founders set out on a mission to bake bread as it used to be baked: by hand, using quality ingredients and time-worn artisanal methods.
While Gail's has expanded aggressively into the north, opening around a dozen bakeries in Greater Manchester and its surrounds, it hasn't made the journey across to Yorkshire just yet.
All that looks set to change, with job ads now listed for roles within a brand-new Yorkshire branch of Gail's.
Based on the job advert, Gail's is heading straight to the spa town of Harrogate - which is a fairly predictable move.
It looks like Gail's is heading for HarrogateGail's will make its Yorkshire debut
When it does open, you'll find loaf choices including classic white and brown sourdough, Gail’s ‘wasteless’ loaves (made using a specially-created recipe designed to incorporate unsold bread crumbs), alongside seeded varieties, baguettes and batons.
Must-tries include Gail’s famous cinnamon buns, still-warm cheese and ham croissants, chocolate chip cookies, and – given the weather we’re having this week – iced coffees, all day long preferably please.
Gail's has now confirmed the opening, with a spokesperson saying: "GAIL’s is excited to confirm it is opening a new bakery in Harrogate later this year. The opening will bring GAIL’s craft baking to the community, including creating a number of craft baking, barista, and management roles.
"We will also be donating surplus baked goods through our Neighbourly partnerships. This is part of our ongoing commitment to giving back to the communities we serve and improving access to quality food and drink on the high-street."
But given the number of fantastic local bakeries all over Yorkshire, the question is, does anyone want Gail's?
Sophie Smith -
8th October 2021 
