Popeyes has officially opened its doors in Leeds City Centre, and it's safe to say that it's already gone down an absolute storm.
Located on Commercial Street, the new restaurant opened its doors at 11am bringing its signature New Orleans hospitality to the area with a live performance from Mardi Gras style band, The Brass Funkeys.
What a way to kickstart the day.
To commemorate the highly-anticipated launch day, customers had the chance to snap a photo in the new Popeyes bite booth and the first three people in the queue were given free Chicken Sandwiches for an entire year.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Over one hundred fans lined up, some from as early as 10:50pm the night before - now that is dedication.
Minjun Gwak, a student at The University of Leeds, was the very first customer through the doors, saying: “Popeyes is the best chicken ever! The Sandwich is world-famous for a reason, so I knew I had to be the first in line!”
Friends Kieran Gibbs and Jack Otobo who arrived at 11:30pm having meticulously planned for three days to secure their spot in the queue said: “We were trying to work out when to arrive to be the first, but Minjun and Joe beat us to it. Still, this is the best chicken we’ve ever had, and we’ve had a proper laugh!” said Gibbs.
Customers can now dive into the full Popeyes menu from the new restaurant, including fan-favourites like the Chicken Sandwich, Tenders, and Signature Chicken Wraps in Classic, Spicy, and BBQ.
And that's not all, starting tomorrow on Saturday 5 April, Popeyes will be serving up its breakfast menu featuring breakfast rolls, muffins, biscuits and cajun hash browns.
Tom Crowley, Popeyes UK Chief Executive Officer, said: “The response to our Leeds opening has been incredible, with fans lining up well in advance to experience our famous Louisiana chicken.
"With such a warm welcome from the people of Leeds, we’re looking forward to bringing our famous Louisiana flavours to even more key cities around the UK. We’ll be sharing news about upcoming locations very soon, so stay tuned!”.
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?
Clementine Hall -
4th April 2025 
