Share the love this February and support your locals in the process.
There's plenty to love about Valentine's Day: regardless of your relationship status. Whether you're celebrating with friends, partners or showing yourself some love this month, you can bet there's plenty of food-based gifts that are perfect for the occassion.
This year, replace the age old box of chocolates with a unique Valentine's Day gift that supports local businesses too. This way, you're sharing the love with small businesses too.
The Savvy Baker- Valentines Brownie
Image: The Savvy Baker
The Valentines Brownie from the Savvy Baker is essentially a giant slab of chocolatey goodness, but all four come with a heartfelt message, including hilarious quotes like ‘cute butt’ and ‘I heart your d*ck’, and the wholesome ‘my fave human’ and ‘happy bestie day’.
Each brownie is priced at £15, a bargain given you can usually get four brownies from £11.00.
What's more romantic than sharing a dessert together? Not a sharer- jus neither. Luckily with this Valentine's Day selection from Oh So Bakes, there's a date night box that offers lots of individual sweet treats. Each delicious box includes 15 Triple Chocolate Brownie Pieces, 15 Kinder Cookie Pieces, white hazelnut dipping sauce, nutella dipping sauce, cookies and cream dipping box, as well as strawberries, Ferrero Rocher, foiled heart chocolates and marshmallows.
Each box costs £25, a 50% deposit must be given to sure the booking.
Packed full of delicious treats, this date night essential is probably one of the sweetest hampers we've seen and it's perfect for a night in on Valentines. Each set comes with half a bottle of wine or Prosecco per person, homemade fresh focaccia bread, olive oil, olives, a selection of meat & cheeses & antipasti, a large bag of crisps, a sweet treat platter and chocolate covered strawberries.
The Date Night hamper costs £50 and should be booked 24 hours hours in advance of collection.
The Gift Box Leeds- Valentine's Collection Cookies
Image: The Gift Box Leeds
If you want to say something heartfelt but don't quite have the words: you can find them pre-written on a giant cookie. These are seriously some of the most beautiful cookies we've ever seen and they come as a pair in a cute Valentine's Day box: all for a tenner too. You can collect from store from Friday 11th February or order online for national delivery.
Each box comes as a set of two cookies and are priced at £10 each.
As well as a selection of regular and gluten free Valentine's Day themed cupcakes, the chef behind Baking Creations is whipping up batches of giant heart brownie and blondie dessert topped with buttercream and a sweet 'Happy Valentine's Day' message on top. Priced at a tenner, this ones a sweet reminder to your loved one that comes without the pricetag.
All orders are available for collection on Sunday 13 February and cost £10 each.
If you're looking for some seriously beautiful gifts for Galentines or Valentines, the talented baker behind Amber's Baked Goods will have you covered. Expect gift boxes filled high the decadently-decorated cupcakes, dipping boxes with Love Heart sweets, homemade brownies and blondies, as well as a choice of Kinder, Bueno, Nutella or caramel dipping sauces.
Each box contains 12 sticks of blondies and brownies and 2 dips and will cost £16 each.
The sweet treats at Cinnammmm come with a date night activity: the DYO (that's decorate your own) boxes are perfect if you're looking for something to do this Valentine's Day- and it leaves you with a tasty dessert for afterwards too. If you'd rather receive a pre-made box, there's Plus Berry Kisses flavours available, as well as a range of heart-shaped cinnammmm's too.
Boxes cost depend on the variation chosen. Make sure to order online before postage on Wednesday 9 February for UK and Friday 11 February for local delivery.
According to new research, Leeds has been named one of the ‘loneliest’ in the UK due to the number of single occupants.
Living alone used to be seen as somewhat of a short-term ‘phase’, often between living in family homes or house shares, but today it’s a completely different story, as solo living is fast becoming a defining feature of urban Britain.
From high-rise studio flats, to compact commuter apartments, single-occupancy living is reshaping the character of many UK cities.
While for some, living alone simply represents independence and flexibility, for others it’s more a case of necessity – with wider demographic data apparently showing single-occupancy linked to student populations, delayed family formation, career mobility, and rising house prices that make shared living less practical.
Image - Ben Elliot ( via Unsplash )
But, with all things considered then, which towns and cities in the UK have the most solo occupants? The ‘loneliest’ cities, if you will.
A new study by Tarotoo set out to identify where solo living is most concentrated across the UK, with researchers analysing 58 cities, examining the number of studio and one-bedroom homes listed for sale or rent per 10,000 residents using Rightmove data – and it was Salford over in Manchester that came out on top.
Salford topped the ranking with a striking 158.08 single-occupancy homes per 10,000 people, which is more than double the figure of the city in second place, and also vastly ahead of the national average.
Leeds came in fifth place with a score of 50.62, standing out as one of the largest cities in the top tier.
Other northern cities in the top 20 include Lancaster at fourth place, and outside the top 20 is where you’ll find other northern cities like Liverpool, Chester, York, and Sheffield.
At the opposite end of the ranking, Newport records just 2.59 single-occupancy homes per 10,000 people, which is the lowest figure in the study, and it’s then followed by Glasgow (3.29), Swansea (3.78), Dundee (4.33), and Stoke-on-Trent (4.51).
Inside the new Far Eastern street-food kiosk that has just opened in Sheffield
Clementine Hall
A bold new street-food concept has just arrived at Meadowhall, and they're giving away free corn dogs to celebrate.
Introducing East Street, a high-energy Far Eastern street food brand designed for those on-the-go looking for a quick yet satisfying burst of flavour.
Inspired by neon-lit urban culture, customers can expect to be transported across the globe with dishes that are fast without compromising on quality.
Independently owned and backed by over 25 years of restaurant experience through the renowned Tampopo family, East Street has built a firm following over in Manchester and luckily for us has now opened in Sheffield's Meadowhall.
Images: The Sheff
So, looking for a delicious pick-me-up whilst doing your shopping? Here's what you can expect from the brand-new East Street. .
The menu is stuffed to the brim with satisfying dishes to keep you going, from crispy katsu curries and Pad Thai to irresistibly cheesy Korean corn dogs. Seriously, you won't believe that cheese pull.
Think big flavours, vibrant aesthetics, and the ultimate grab-and-go lunch spot.
Images: The Sheff
Simply order what you fancy from the interactive screens and before you know it you'll be served a piping hot meal in a flash, it really couldn't be easier.
There's noodle dishes, rice dishes and even beloved salt and pepper fries on offer, and if you don't fancy a main there's some great sides like vegetable spring rolls and Thai chicken wings.
The best part? With any main meal purchased up until Sunday 8 March 2026, you can grab yourself a FREE Original Cheese Corn Dog or the Triple Cheese Corn Dog.
Images: The Sheff
And it doesn't stop there, there's also a special BOGOF offer on until Tuesday 31 March where you can buy any dish and get one from the same section completely free of charge.
All you have to do is mention the offer to your server before ordering - we can't think of a better excuse to try out this new spot.
So next time you're at Meadowhall, don't compromise on flavour and get yourself down to East Street for a flavour-packed meal served in a flash.
You can find out more and view their full menu here.
Sophie Smith -
3rd February 2022 
