SALT Craft + Cocktails is the perfect backdrop to your next special occasion.
Award-winning Yorkshire craft brewery SALT Beer Factory has been expanding across the city over the past year. Taking over the former Craft Asylum buildings, they have set up an incredible exposed brick bar and dining space in Granary Wharf and East Parade, each with their own concept.
In a joint effort with Middle Eastern food vendors, Falafel Guys, SALT Craft + Falafel opened earlier this year to serve up falafel, shawarma and halloumi to the masses on the Leeds Liverpool canal whilst their city centre location, East Parade, focus on drink offerings for the late night crowd.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Called SALT Craft + Cocktails, this is the place to grab a speciality drink or two right in the beating heart of the city centre.
Naturally the cocktails here are the go-to choice, not just because they're delicious (and we’re happy to vouch for that), but because you can grab anything from a Salted Caramel Espresso Martini to a Rum Punch in the same time it would take to pour a pint.
Elsewhere on the menu, you'll find summer offerings like Strawberry and Rhubarb Cosmopolitans, Aperol Spritz and Blood Orange Margarita.
These refreshing options come in addition to Ossett Brewery’s Yøn Helles Lager and SALTs much-loved selection of core range craft beers Jute, Citra, Huckaback, Alpaca and Ikat along with their specials and collaboration series brews such as The Hexagon Project #14 and Can I Borrow a Feeling?.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
The interior is decked out with a “living wall” of plants and greenery, with bi-fold windows opening out onto a brand-new outdoor seating area, acting as the perfect spot to socialise over a drink in the sunshine as the beating sun heats the outdoor space. Decorated with neon signage and exposed brick, it’s also incredibly understated in its décor, making it an ideal location for those looking for a photo op or two.
The genius bartenders here have cocktails on ‘tap’, so there's no waiting about and they're even 2 for £12 all day every day, making them an ideal location for any occasion. Whether you're treating the team at the office or hosting a birthday celebration, SALT Craft + Cocktails is set up perfectly for private events, so guests can expect quality service and incredible flavours on tap, no matter how busy the bar is.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Located just moments from one of Leeds' busiest nightlife spots, the East Parade location is slap-bang in the middle of all of the action especially once the sunny skies turn from pastel hues of aqua and lilac into midnight black.
Best of all, you can hire rooms for free, so there's no extra expenses involved, and if that’s not enough, there's a live DJ from 7pm every Friday and Saturday. So, although there's every opportunity to venture out into Leeds after you've partied at SALT, there isn't any necessity to leave this much-loved venue.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
All that’s really left to do is grab your desired company be it family, friends or colleagues and even their four-legged companions (yes, you can bring your dogs along too) to your next big event:
For more information, including how to book Leeds Craft + Cocktails at East Parade, Leeds city centre for your next big event, email salteastparade@saltbeerfactory.co.uk.
Feature Image- The Hoot Leeds
Eats
Posh bakery chain Gail’s is finally coming to Yorkshire
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
It had previously been reported that Gail's would be going to Knaresborough, but the job posting appears to hint that Harrogate will be the first Yorkshire location.
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.
But given the number of fantastic local bakeries all over Yorkshire, the question is, does anyone want Gail's?
Kirkstall Brewery and Little Bao Boy unveil new Leeds taproom
Daisy Jackson
You know the venue, and you know the operators behind it, but things are looking a little different over on Sovereign Street.
Leeds' very own Kirkstall Brewery has teamed up with street food legends Little Bao Boy to totally reinvent the city centre taproom formerly known as North Taproom.
At the all-new The City Taproom, you'll find a way cosier space alongside their sun-soaked terrace, as they aim to reimagine a traditional city centre pub.
Across 16 tap lines there are loads of Kirkstall Brewery classics, like Kirkstall Pilsner, Virtuous and Judicious, plus a rotating selection of guest beers from top British breweries - and Guinness, of course.
The City Taproom will also feature two new cask lines: one serving Three Swords as a staple, and the other on rotation starting this month with Golden Hour.
There's a bigger kitchen for Little Bao Boy too, which means an even larger menu of bao and Asian street food, like loaded fries, noodles, and rice bowls.
Little Bao Boy was founded 10 years ago by James Ooi, specialising in home-made bao buns and traditional Asian street food with a contemporary western twist.
Kirkstall have injected the huge space with the traditional essence of a proper Kirkstall establishment, with that kind of cosy atmosphere you know them for at the brewery's other sites.
Little Bao Boy at City TaproomKirkstall Brewery pints and cocktails
This is yet another of the local brewery's openings in the city centre, joining their recent renovation of The Victoria & Commercial in partnership with Whitelocks, plus their stewardship of the historic Tetley brewery building.
James Ooi, founder of Little Bao Boy said: "We have been part of this venue since day one, through COVID, outside seating, and new owners, and we are so excited for this refurb.
"On the food side, expect more collaborations, faster service, and a better overall customer experience. We are extremely grateful Kirkstall saw the value in this refurb and can't wait to get back open."
Steve Holt, founder of Kirkstall Brewery, said: "We're delighted to unveil a new presentation for the Taproom on Sovereign Street.
"It has been named The City Taproom after a famous but long-gone Leeds pub known as ‘The City’, which was situated where the statue of the Dortmund Brewer now stands. Images of the original City pub are a feature in the new look City Taproom, which can best be described as a 're-imagination' of a traditional city-centre pub.
"The City Taproom celebrates Leeds and its rich pub and brewing heritage. We hope that it will become a popular addition to the amazing and diverse venues that make Leeds such a vibrant City for hospitality and entertainment."
It's all the bits you loved before, just a little bigger and a whole lot better.
The City Taproom opens at 3 Sovereign Street on Thursday 23 April.
Sophie Smith -
24th April 2022 
