A new loyalty scheme has launched at some of Yorkshire’s top restaurants which promises to ditch the ‘tired points system’ in favour of much better discounts and offers.
Club IR comes from Individual Restaurants, the group behind Piccolino, Riva Blu, and Restaurant Bar & Grill, with 32 restaurants across the UK.
And with the new loyalty scheme, they’re offering members exclusive deals and experiences, such as a round of drinks on your birthday and special discounts running throughout the week.
For a limited time only, anyone who signs up to Club IR (which is completely free, by the way) will be in with a chance to win a £250 voucher to dine, along with a bottle of Champagne.
Club IR discounts that are available at its beautiful restaurants across Leeds, Sheffield and the wider West Yorkshire area include 15% off dining on Mondays and Tuesdays, 50% off all wine and champagne on Wednesdays, and sharing roasts on Sundays with a complimentary dessert for members.
Newly-launched is Club Friday, where Club IR members can get two courses and a drink for £25 every week at Piccolino restaurants including Collingham, Ilkley, Harrogate and Sheffield.
Dishes on the exclusive menu include arancina and calamari fritti for your primi course, and a huge list of pizzas and pastas for secondi, like salami and nduja pizza or tagliatelle alla bolognese.
There are also steak and Malbec evenings for just £35 on Thursdays at Restaurant Bar & Grill locations, like the stunning restaurant inside the historic Old Post Office building in Leeds.
Club IR actually has three tiers of membership available, from Club to Black to Diamond, with different benefits and money-can’t-buy experiences for each tier.
There are VIP events aplenty, like parties, top sporting events, and once-in-a-lifetime trips to top culinary destinations.
Club IR’s bespoke approach has been created following research into customer appetites, which has found that we all much prefer a variety of offers and discounts instead of a points-based loyalty programme.
It has an easy-to-use app that gets members easy access to offers, updates and perks.
If you sign up for Club IR now, you’ll be entered into a competition to win a £250 voucher to dine at the restaurant, plus a bottle of champagne.
A Leeds pizza takeaway has received a glowing review from popular review duo.
Edges Pizza opened up their first permanent spot in Leeds back in June this year, after making a name for themselves slinging out pizzas at multiple pop-ups across the city.
Owners Grace and Edge from Harrogate opened Edges Pizza two years ago, taking inspiration from trips to New York over the years.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Their pizzas are a love letter to the class New York slice, think thin and crispy rather than chewy and floppy. But above all else, think absolutely delicious.
And now, they've caught the attention of a major review page, with Bite Twice Food Reviews (a page with almost 300k followers) paying Edges a visit.
The food review duo of Gerry del Guercio and Paul Delany popped up in Holbeck beneath the arches to get their hands on a pizza, and the outcome is brilliant.
In the video, Bite Twice said that the pizza is 'f**cking exceptional' and up there with 'one of the best pizzas in the UK'.
Before even taking a bite, they said: "On aesthetic, I don't think anywhere in the UK is doing pizza like this".
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Then after the first bite, they go on to say: "There are very few pizzas in the UK that create this, I’m a little bit blown away".
As Londoners themselves, they go on to say that Edges is 'easily hitting with the best that we’ve got down south'.
And if that's not high praise enough, they sign off the video saying: "Leeds has got an absolute gem. I give this a stamp so hard my foot went through the pizza. Edges. Don Level."
The 42-year-old Kirkgate Market stall serving freshly shucked oysters for £1.90 a pop
Clementine Hall
Tucked away in Leeds Kirkgate Market you'll find a wonderful seafood stall selling freshly shucked oysters for £1.90 each.
It's places like these that remind us why we love Leeds so much.
Established in 1880, Hayes Seafood is widely regarded as the oldest trader within the historic Kirkgate Market.
For the past 42 years, it has been run by Cliff and Michelle, the loveliest couple who welcome every customer with open arms.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
The menu here is small but perfectly formed, focusing on fresh, ready-to-eat seafood that you can enjoy with a squeeze of lemon and a dollop of mayonnaise at most.
Delivered fresh every morning, there's pre-cracked crab shells, brown and white crab meat, cockles, crawfish tails - all perfectly prepared for you to eat at their bar or high tables opposite.
But, it's the oysters that you'll see people queueing for. And rightly so.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Everything here is prepared to order right in front of you, and for no extra fee. You can choose from two types of oysters: super salty Lindisfarne oysters or the slightly sweeter English Loch Fyne.
We recommend having a couple of each, pulling up a stool right by the counter and getting stuck in. If you ask Cliff nicely, he might tell you a bit about the history of the place - but you may have to order a couple more oysters for that.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
You're left to dress them yourself, whether you prefer dash of fiery tabasco or a few pickled shallots. But to be honest, they're delicious just as they come.
This spot is a real piece of Leeds history, and the queues at lunchtime as well as the repeat regular customers proves just how special it is.
All it's missing is a champagne stall next to it...now wouldn't that be perfect?
Daisy Jackson -
21st June 2024 
