Meanwood is about to get a new neighbourhood cocktail bar, as cocktail aficionados Number 8 plan their move into the area.
Previously located over in Manchester at the independent urban village Hatch, Number 8 has made quite a name for itself across the Pennines with its fun takes on classics, all made using premium ingredients.
They made quite a name for themselves there over the course of two years, serving up some interesting and tasty concoctions such as their 'Mangoes to Salford', made with Salford Rum gold spiced, mango purée, freshly squeezed lime and a dash of maple syrup.
They also served a popular selection of classics, including bloody marys and espresso martinis - which we are sure will also make a reemergence here in Leeds.
No 8 at its former home at Hatch / Image: Number 8
The cocktail bar left the Bruntwood food and drink development last year during the pandemic, along with all the other independent drink traders- some of whom were actually evicted from their shipping container units, only to be replaced with lookalike bars.
It was certainly a tough time for lots of independent small hospitality businesses last year, but now it seems that things are on the up. They're definitely looking good for the guys behind Number 8, who've secured the former Hungry Bear unit on Stonegate road.
Number 8's new home in Meanwood, in the former Hungry Bear site / Image: Number 8
Currently, the site's a work in progress but there already seems to be quite a lot of excitement with plenty of followers already commenting asking when the new bar will be open.
In the meantime, the team has been sharing pictures of the renovation work to give followers some behind the scenes insights as to what to expect from the new bar when it's finished.
Currently, there's lots of exposed brick on display and some large sash windows to let in plenty of light.
A classic espresso martini created by the team at Number 8 / Image: Number 8
Sharing the news on their Instagram, the team said:
"WE’RE RELOCATING!
"After months of searching for the perfect spot, Number 8 has a permanent new residence in the vibrant suburb of Meanwood, Leeds.
"Our affable staff (and handsome bar dog, Frank) can’t wait to recommence serving up tasty cocktails, great music & good times… with a few new tricks up our sleeve 🍴.
Resident pooch Frank, who was often to been seen hanging out in the old bar / Image: Number 8
"We look forward to welcoming new faces and old (for anyone venturing over the Pennines)…
"Updates to follow…Watch this space
"Meanwood, we can’t wait to call you home!"
We for one are certainly very excited to see them open over here, we're sure they'll make a great addition to the Leeds food and drink scene.
To keep up with more updates from the team ahead of their launch in Meanwood, follow them on Instagram here.
The tiramisu hype lives on, and this time it's coming to Leeds.
It really does feel like the traditional Italian dessert has taken the world by storm as of late.
Everything from tiramisu cups and tiramisu coffees have been popping up all over our feed, and now tiramisu in drawer form is popping up in the city centre.
Misu Tiramisu is an independent business that began at Manchester's Christmas Markets and quickly became one of the most popular operators, all thanks to its miniature tiramisu ‘drawers’.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
The individually portioned and colourfully packaged desserts quickly became one of town’s top puddings, and owners Aleem and Aishah went on to launch a stand inside the Manchester Arndale too.
And now they’re branching out again in Leeds inside Trinity shopping centre for a two month residency.
You’ll find all their delicious flavours of handmade tiramisu, including classic, pistachio, chocolate, Biscoff, mango, and lemon - they'll also have some gluten-free tiramisu on offer as well, so no one has to miss out.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Misu Tiramisu owners Aleem and Aishah spent a year refining the recipe for their tiramisus after a trip to Milan, first launching with their first market stall in Sale.
Misu Tiramisu is now open inside Trinity shopping centre opposite Boots Opticians and Pop Specs.
They're open every day of the week for you to get your tiramisu fix, from 9am to 8pm Monday to Saturday and from 11am to 5pm on a Sunday.
And trust us Leeds, they're just as delicious as they are adorable.
Fossilised 320-million-year-old fish found in Leeds’ Roundhay Park
Clementine Hall
A prehistoric fish fossil has been unearthed at Roundhay Park in Leeds.
The fascinating prehistoric skull bone of a coelacanth fish was discovered by a geologist at Roundhay Park earlier this year.
It is thought the creature was frozen in time aeons ago, during an era when the park was submerged under a vast tropical lagoon.
The remarkable discovery has now been kindly donated to Leeds Museums and Galleries and added to the natural sciences collection at Leeds Discovery Centre.
Image: Leeds City Council
The Leeds fossil was found by Ru Smith of the Yorkshire Geological Society during a reconnaissance walk he was carrying out ahead of a planned field excursion in the north Leeds park.
Describing the moment he made the discovery, Ru said: “There’s a layer of rock in the park which dates from around 320 million years ago, from a time before the breakup of the continents, when what is now the park would have been situated close the Equator and under the warm waters of a tropical lagoon. West Central Africa would be a good place to find similar environments in the present.
“There’s a bed of freshwater mussels called Carbonicola at one level in the rock, and opening a piece of shale from this bed in my hands I saw something unusual – a distinctive skull bone of a large fish. I knew straight away this was something different and very rare."
The bone was verified byexperts as belonging to a coelacanth older than those found elsewhere in Yorkshire, making it the oldest fossil coelacanth discovered in the region.
Ru added: “Coelacanths are pretty amazing fish and it’s just very cool to think that at one time, you could have been standing in Leeds and watching them swim around above a bed of mussels in Roundhay Park.
“That’s really the wonder of geology, looking at the rock and time travelling in the imagination to what was a very different world.”
Georgina Pellant -
8th October 2021 
