Foodies of Leeds will be excited to hear the news.
The Cheesy Living Co. is an ever-humble lockdown success cheese business that have had a whirlwind few years like no other.
Whether you've met Jake and Soph at the Corn Exchange or whilst visiting the Savvy Baker, The Cheesy Living Co. specialise in bringing top-notch cheese and charcuterie dishes to our doorsteps, and if you haven't heard of them yet- you will soon.
Whilst we wait in anticipation to find out whether these, guesses are correct- and find out when we can grab our next foodie fix from The Cheesy Living Co,. you can find them around Leeds, but you can also grab all things cheese and charcuterie online.
The company create bespoke boxes of cheese, cured meats and accompaniments, as well as selling limited edition stock such as Spanish cheese, sweet rocky road salami and more.
The team of two: Jake Fischer, the ‘big cheese’ and Soph Branowsky, Creative Director, set out to take on the cheese scene after finding a gap on the market for locally sourced products during lockdown.
Image: The Cheesy Living Co.
Founder Jake told us that: “Working in hospitality, when covid restrictions hit hard for the second time we decided that the time was right (and for our own sanity) to pursue a passion and love for all things cheese and charcuterie.
“Having a good product is one part of it of course, but the rest is down to the incredible support we’ve had from family, friends and all of our customers… We have a lot of ambition and seeing that start to become a reality is such an incredible feeling.
“2021 has been such a tough year for so many people, so to be able to do what we’re passionate about on a daily basis is such a humbling feeling.”
We can't wait to hear more about their permanent store opening.
To get your cheese and charcuterie fix, you can visit the Cheesy Living Co’s Instagram page to follow their journey to an official, permanent space and find out where the company will be popping up in the meantime too. Alternatively, to take their charcuterie boards for a taste test- head over to their website.
This family-run Japanese-inspired cafe is one not to miss.
Okay, so technically this one isn't brand-new...but it is definitely worth shouting about.
Shokupan first opened its doors on Wellington Place in 2022, and since then they have gone from strength to strength serving the people of Leeds with their deliciously fluffy shokupan sandwiches.
So much so, that they have relocated to a bigger and better space smack bang in the city centre on Central Road.
Born out of a passion for cooking at home and travelling overseas, husband and wife team Alan and Alison, swapped jobs in digital marketing and mechanical engineering to bring carefully-perfected recipes to Leeds.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Taking inspiration from trips around the world, including America's west coast where the couple were first introduced to the popularity of Shokupan, returning to normal life after years of being on-the-go seemed like the perfect opportunity to change paths and take a passion for home cooking to a commercial level.
The couple spent time trying and testing the perfect shokupan recipe at home before sending samples to a bakery, who now deliver bespoke batches of the Japanese milk bread to their cafe.
For those unfamiliar with Shokupan, it's a style of Japanese milk bread known for its light, fluffy texture, golden crust and a subtly sweet flavour- and it's truly delicious.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Their new space is just beautiful, light and airy complete with plenty of space for you to perch and enjoy your sando.
And It's safe to say that Shokupan are easily selling some of the nicest sandos you’ll find anywhere in the North.
From classics like the tamago and their British breakfast twist the ‘Spamago’, to the South American-style chorizo sauasage patty version, it’s really quite tough to decide on your favourite.
Their other generously portioned carby mains are a standout, too, with classic katsu curry or the tonkatsu rice bowls with your meat of choice keeping you full for hours.
Wash it all down with authentic imported drink, and you’re laughing.
Vinyl-only 1970s-inspired cocktail bar coming to Leeds from team behind some of the city’s best bars
Clementine Hall
A new cocktail bar is coming to Leeds city centre.
If you know a thing or two about cocktails, or just drinks in general, then you're going to be very excited about this news.
The very talented team behind Roland's on Call Lane and The Domino Club, just to name a few, are setting their sites on a brand-new venture.
Introducing Paper Plane, an intimate new cocktail bar that will be taking over the old Casa site in the city's beautiful Grand Arcade.
Paper Plane will be inspired by the glamour of 1970s air travel and will be a vinyl-only listening bar, serving a world-inspired cocktail menu alongside a carefully curated whisky collection.
The space will be lovely and intimate, with around just 40 covers, designed to transport guests somewhere completely different from the minute they step foot through the door.
And what a location too, joining a whole host of fantastic independents in the arcade such as Alfonso's Deli, Stuzzi and Sonder.
For now, we don't know many more details about the project, but we already know it's going to be exceptional cas anything these guys do turns to gold.
Not only has Roland's been consistently one of the busiest bars on Call Lane since they opened back in 2014, but The Domino Club was recently crowned one of the best cocktail bars in the world. Now that is some accolade worth shouting about.
We'll keep you updated with Paper Plane's progress, but Roland's have stated that the site is hoping to open this coming autumn. So we really don't have long to wait.
Sophie Smith -
4th March 2022 
