Fish&

Fish& is a fish and chip shop with a difference. Based within the new Dock St Market venture, the canteen style take away sells sustainably sourced fish served in an imaginative way. As well as the more conventional beer battered fish and chips, the menu contains dishes such as 'sourdough breadcrumb,  fresh lemon thyme and rosemary encrusted' fish with chips and 'salmon, sweet potato and coriander' fishcakes.

I chose the pan fried massala rubbed fish, served with sweet potato wedges. The piquancy of the spices balanced well with the sweetness of the wedges and although the portion wasn't huge, it was more than enough (lets face it, who can realistically manage a 'standard' portion of fish and chips).

A range of sauces are available including the most amazing garlic mayo, antisocial yet delicious.  As dock street is more a take away than a restaurant, the food is served in disposable boxes, which I am assured will be changed to card soon (I *hate* polystyrene with a passion). The seating area is basic but comfortable.

As well as serving food that is tasty and a little different, Fish& only use fish from sustainable sources and are supporting the Fish Fight campaign by serving the MackBap (see previous post). Prices are a little bit more than at a normal chippie but I think Fish& provides a little bit more than a normal chippie.

Fish& is open Fridays and Saturdays from lunchtime onwards. Worth a visit.

*Interesting take on fish and chips
*Sustainably sourced fish
*Comfortable eat in area

Dock St Market
Dock St
Leeds
LS10 1JF

Mackerel Mission #2

I have today found another place selling Mackbaps. Fish& at Dock St Market are selling them for £3.50.

The bap comes served with tartare sauce and a portion of chips. The bun is freshly baked by in house bakers Riverside Sourdough Bakery and the boneless fish is supplied by fishmongers at Leeds Market. Check out the Channel 4 fish fight website here. More to come about Fish& at a later date.

If you know of any other chippies selling Mackbaps let me know!

Mackerel Mission

I like most people have been watching the channel 4 'Fish fight' programs in the past few weeks with great interest. If you don't know what I am talking about, check out the website.

Anyway, since seeing Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall introduce the Mackerel Bap into chippies in Weymouth I have been wanting to try one for myself. Rich from Them Apples cooked his own, but I am too lazy to do this. After a bit of research I found out Nash's on Merrion St have put mackerel on the menu so I went today to have a try.

I went to the downstairs take away counter. The baps are £2.50 each and come with 2 enormous pieces of fish. I had to purchase a sachet of tartare sauce separately for 25p as this was not included, although I was offered some home made ketchup.

I was not disappointed- the mackbap is as good as all they hype. The fish was beautifully soft and the flavour actually milder than I expected and not too oily like some people had suggested. The nice freshly baked bread cake only improved the meal further. There was so much fish that the breadcake actually disintegrated under the strain half way through so I finished it with a fork. Despite this, I really enjoyed this as an alternative to traditional fish and chips. I am keen to see this get onto the menu in a few more chippies around Leeds.

This campaign is something I really believe in and want to support. Add your name to the petition and let me know if you find any more chippies selling the mackbap so I can get them featured on the blog.

Lunch at Thai Edge

I reviewed Thai Edge relatively recently so I don't need to go into great detail this time as the decor and service were just as spot on as before.

On this occasion I went for lunch with Gev. On the lunch menu there is a wide choice of starters and mains including noodle and curry dishes.

The portion sizes were generous and the food was all really good. I particularly enjoyed the starter, deep fried prawn fish cakes. The substantial cakes were packed with minced prawns and came with a small side salad and a lovely dip. The beef mussaman curry was quite mild with nice big pieces of meat and whole peanuts and came with rice included.

The lunchtime express menu is priced at £7.95 for 2 courses which I think it represents really good value.

Thai Edge
*Pleasant surroundings
*Good value lunch deal
*Delicious food

New Portland Street
7 Calverley Street
LS1 3DY

0113 243 6333

Website

Behind the scenes at Indie Ices

I have started to a behind the scenes series, looking at local independent food producers. In the first one I interview Mike Tattersall of Indie Ices. Read it over on the Culture Vulture blog.

Afternoon Tea at Mint Hotel

In honor of Gev's birthday we went for afternoon tea at Mint Hotel (formally City Inn) at Granary Wharf. Tom had tried to book on the phone and was told he didn't need to. When we turned up we were asked if we had booked, we said no and then they looked as if we had caught them slightly on the hop! Never mind.

We decided to sit up in the sky lounge with its awesome views over the city. The decor is very sharp and modern, its just a shame that we were virtually the only people up there as the atmosphere was lacking a little because of it.

We ordered afternoon tea x3. There was a choice of tea, but the food was a fixed offering. The tea was proper leaf tea served with a strainer (this is a must as far as I am concerned with Afternoon Tea) and then a few minutes later the food came out.

We each got 4 finger sandwiches, egg and cress, salmon, cucumber & cream cheese and ham & mustard. There was also a lemon curd tart, a piece of parkin and 2 scones.

The sandwiches were all quite nice, as was the parkin. The lemon curd was home made with a lovely crisp sweet pastry case.

The let down was the scones. They had quite a nice crisp texture on the outside however all three of us agreed that they were really very salty. They came served with Chantilly cream rather than Clotted. I know it is silly but this really bothered me. I mentioned it on Twitter and caused a reaction that I will now refer to as #sconegate. The people spoke and agreed that Clotted is the only acceptable type of cream to have with a scone.

The price on the menu was £15, but a 10% service charge was lumped onto that making the bill £16.50 each, bringing it into line with the price charged by the great afternoon tea masters Betty's.

It was a good effort but it came just a bit too far wide of the mark to be forgiven. For me afternoon tea is a special treat, a great event that should leave you feeling giddy and happy and slightly stuffed and sick from having at least 3 types of cake with 8 cups of tea. The only bit I got really excited about was the lemon curd tart. The scones made me sad. Its a shame because the sky bar is awesome and I would like a good reason to go back lots. Afternoon tea will not be this reason.

Mint Hotel
* Great views
* Friendly service
* Disappointing afternoon tea

Granary Wharf
Dark Neville Street
LS1 4BR
0113 241 1000

Website

Thai Sabai

Thai Sabai is one of the many places that I have heard good things about but never managed to visit, until last week.

Its only a small place with about 20 seats, opposite Trio bar on North Lane in Headingley. Like all good Thai restaurants, the walls are covered in wood carvings and wall hangings and the super polite waitresses are traditionally dressed.

We went at 6.30pm in order to take advantage of the early bird menu; £9.95 for 2 courses and a drink before 7pm.

The list of starters had a variety of about six dishes including chicken satay, soup and fried chicken toast. I chose the deep fried vegetables, served with a sweet chilli dip. The presentation was good and the batter was light and crispy.

Main courses were a selection of curry and noodle dishes. I had the grilled white fish in a red curry and coconut sauce. Boiled rice was included in the price. The fish was perfectly complimented by the the delicate, sweet flavours of the curry sauce. The portion was not huge but with the rice it was more than adequate and for the price a complete bargain!

I couldn't fault the meal, everything was delicious, the atmosphere and service was great. The price was just the icing on the cake.

Thai Sabai
*Small traditional Thai restaurant
*Attentive service
*Good value early bird deal

2 The Parade
North Lane
Headingley

0113 2758613

Tampopo revisited

Tampopo has always been a firm favorite of mine and I first reviewed it on the blog almost exactly 2 years ago (read it here). I visited again on Monday with Em and Lindsay for lunch.

The interior is fairly plain and simple and you sit on long communal bench seats. There is always a buzz of activity even when the restaurant is quiet due to the open kitchen that runs down one side of the room.

The cuisine is a mix and match of popular pan Asian rice and noodle dishes.

We had a starter platter to share at £5.50 each. It came with a huge range of sauces and dips which were explained to us by the waiter. Every item was delicious in its own way and the presentation was lovely.

For my main course I had Kway Teo (£8.25) a Malaysian dish, which came covered a rich smoky soy sauce. The presentation doesn't look up to much but the taste made up for it.

The food came out quickly however the service was a bit too relaxed and haphazard. I arrived late and was given my drink immediately even though my friends who had ordered their drinks 10 minutes before were still drinkless.

Despite the minor irks the food was great as always; fresh, simple and full of flavour and at just under £20 each the price is perfectly reasonable. The little piece of rock we were given with our bill sums up my feelings perfectly:

Tampopo
*Fresh pan Asian food
*Good value
*Lively atmosphere

15 South Parade, Leeds.
LS1 5QS
0113 245 1816
Website

Gray Ox Inn

I was asked to review the Gray Ox months ago in August or something like that, and I was too busy to go, then I spent nearly a month in Oz and forgot that they had asked me. Then they asked me again and because I am skint (due to aforementioned month in Oz) I decided to go and take them up on their free meal offer.

The Gray Ox is a gastro pub in the village of Heartshead, just over 10 miles from Leeds. I went with Em because she is the only person I know with a car erm I mean because she is my BFF.

Being very intrepid townies, we made our way out into the snowy wilds and found the beautiful stone built pub, quite conveniently just a 5 min drive from the motorway.

Inside it is all you would expect from a quaint country pub, including the roaring open fires.

As it was a Sunday we chose from the Sunday Lunch menu priced at £13.95 for 2 courses and £19.95 for 3 courses. The menus change on a weekly basis, and being December the choices had a decidedly festive theme.

I had for a starter, haggis in a filo pastry parcel on a bed of neeps and tatties with a whisky cream sauce. The pastry was crisp and the haggis filling meaty and crumbly. Emma's chicken liver parfait was smooth and velvety, served in a huge chunk that we devoured with our forks once the little pieces of brioche toast had been spent.

The main courses were 2 proper big roast dinners. Emma had the turkey, 3 huge slices of white and brown meat, with a 'pig in blanket' and a huge chunk of apricot stuffing made with real sausage meat. My beef dinner came with roast and mash potatoes a huge crisp Yorkshire pud and loads of gravy.

Desserts were an egg nogg creme brulee and a sticky toffee pudding. Both classic puds both perfectly done.

What we really appreciated was the apparent attention to detail by the kitchen; the presentation was great and every element of the food right down to the dressings and side dishes were delicious.

One way I try to stay objective about free meals is to tot up what the bill should have been and then say to myself  'how would you have felt paying £xx for that?'. I left they Gray Ox thinking that I would have more than happily parted with twenty quid for that experience and if Em is willing to be my chauffeur I will gladly go again as a paying customer.


Gray Ox
*Excellent, carefully considered food
*Very good value
*Beautiful country pub location


15 Hartshead Lane,
Liversedge,
WF15 8AL


Tel:01274 872845
Website