Leeds Archives • Wandering Curiosities

August 8, 2017

XO Supper Club Leeds – A Pop Restaurant With a Difference

I never win anything. Now this is a little bit of a lie because I once won a fancy dress competition dressed as a giant tub of pop corn when I was 6. So, it would seem all my winnings are food related because I won tickets to the latest XO Supper Club pop up at Mr Nobody’s in Leeds.

“xo – a modern Asian supperclub doing sick food for the people of Leeds”

Mr Nobody’s was where XO Supper Club decided to hold this pop up restaurant. And I couldn’t think of a better place. We were treated to a cocktail menu that hinted to the menu that was to come. Our first drink of the evening was the XO Spritz, it was light and refreshing with the perfect hint of fizz.

Before we get to the food can we talk about the table settings?! Little lego men and origami swans were sat on the table waiting for us. The cellar restaurant of Mr Nobody’s allowed for an atmosphere that I don’t think I’ve experience in a restaurant. There was a buzz about the air.

xo supper club a cheese burger spring roll

Cheese burger spring rolls are what everyone was talking about at the end of the evening and rightly so. They were bloody fantastic, I am a massive cheese burger fan so this is what I was most excited about. I was not disappointed. I don’t know how they did it but damn it tasted like a Big Mac. Yummmm!

Next was a rather fancy cheese toasty. It was a little posher then I’ve ever made with perfectly spiced Thai chicken, with mozzarella and kaffir lime. These were certainly a modern asian spin on classics and they did not disappoint.

The next 2 course struck fear into Kevin’s heart. Octopus and S**T Ramen. He was once a very fussy eater but over the last 8 years I have slowly made him into the man he is today. He will try almost anything now including octopus and actually enjoy it.

The Octopus was lovely and not as fishy as I was expecting, tasty and no scary suckers to stick to your teeth. (I actually have no idea why this is a fear of mine). The S**T Ramen wasn’t shit at all. It was delicious. Not too spicy and no over powering coriander taste like I normally find with some ramens it was seasoned perfectly.

xo supper club bo-ssam pork wraps
Bo-ssam, slow cooked belly pork. Belly pork is one of my favourite cuts of meats and this did not disappoint. I loved the tiny tea cups filled with toppings. The crispy lettuce were the perfect compliment and making little wraps was a great way to end the savoury section of our meal.

xo supper club hangover cone ice cream with bacon and crisps
The infamous hangover cone. This is not something you want to avoid like a dreaded week day hangover. You welcome it with open arms. An excellent balance of salty and sweetness, is something that you wouldn’t initially think of pairing but works so well.

If you keep an eye on XO Supper Clubs Instagram and Twitter you may find them doing a takeover of venues around Leeds so you can try the Hangover Cone and Cheese Burger Spring Roll for your self!

I had a great evening and Kevin did too. Winning a competition to eat such amazing food was definitely a highlight of my month!

July 10, 2017

Champagne School | Epernay Leeds

Remember when I went to Coffee School? Champagne school is also an actual thing!

Hello there lovely come and fill my glass up! Epernay Champagne Bar in Leeds are now offering you the chance to learn a thing or two about our favourite French tipple.

It is no secret that I am a fan of something cold and bubbly. So when given the opportunity to try champagne school*; how could I say no?

Champagne to me is always a luxurious treat; drank in celebration. Think birthdays, passing exams, New Years Eve that kind of thing. This means it’s not something that I drink frequently. Making Champagne School feel very exclusive.

Champagne School teaches you everything you need to know about this bubbly drink. The difference between Champagne and Prosecco, what grape varieties are used to make Champagne, what makes a vintage Champagne and so much more information that you can show off to your friends and colleagues with. I won’t be giving you any of the answers though because, well that is cheating after all!

So now armed with my new knowledge when I buy my next bottle of Champagne it will be a much more informed choice.

You can book tickets to Champagne School here

Location:
Épernay Champagne Bar,
Great George St,
Leeds LS1 3DW

For those that don’t know Epernay’s is in the Electric Press a Grade II listed building. They have an indoor court yard that is beautiful to sit in summer or winter watching the world pass by. One of the most impressive features though is the walk-in Champagne cellar that is chilled to the optimum temperature. I now want one of these at home and of course a bar tender to pour me a glass or 3. Any volunteers?

Would you like to go to Champagne School? If so you can find tickets here.

*I was lucky enough to be invited to try Champagne School for free but all opinions are my own, honest and belong to me with a glass of something chilled and bubbly in my hand.

July 7, 2017

Dessert Heaven at Kaspa’s Leeds

Dessert for dinner? Yes please! If like me you can’t say no to dessert for a dinner then Kaspa’s in Leeds hits the sweet spot. Terrible puns are included free of charge.

Ok now I have your attention with a giant banana split let me tell you about this dessert house. I got a sneak peek at what they had to offer on launch night and let me tell you that you’ll be desperate to visit by the time I’m done.

Not only do they do amazing desserts, think waffles; pancakes; exclusive gelato flavours; cookie dough and more. Basically all the best stuff. Kaspa’s is right in the centre of Leeds sat in The Core shopping centre. The Core is only 10 minutes walk from the train station, or you can park in the connected car park.

Are you hungry yet? The menu is huge as are the portions, we were treated to a selection of desserts. Including that amazing banana split, a strawberry indulgence waffle and a white chocolate crepe. I want to eat that waffle right now and its 10am. Actually I can’t stop thinking about it. When I can go back? I am a woman possessed by thoughts of strawberry waffles.

Kaspa’s interior is also a little dreamy. They have glittery walls and neon lights (be still my beating heart)! A 1960s diner style set up with bold colours and booths, makes for some awesome Instagram friendly shots. Kaspa’s also run a selfie of the week competition where you can win a free dessert! I shall repeat a FREE DESSERT!

Would I go back?

I think if you’ve got this far into this post and haven’t realised that I’d recommend that everyone stop by here, I have done something wrong. Weekend calories don’t count right?

Location

Kaspas Desserts
The Core Shopping Centre
Leeds City Centre
LS1 6JB

You can follow Kaspa’s on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for all the latest offers.

May 12, 2017

Getting My First Ever Energy Blow Dry at HOB Salons | Leeds

Sometimes a girl just needs a blow dry. There isn’t much more too it then that. A quick pamper session and visit to a fancy salon in-between hair cuts is what the doctor ordered. I was lucky enough to be invited to HOB Salons in Leeds to try out their new Energy Blow Dry. Even better I could bring a friend, so of course we made it into a real ladies who get pampered session.

Ok I’m starting with the end result to entice you in. Hello fancy products, a glass of something fizzy and two bouncy blow drys. Coming straight from work I can promise you our hair did not look this good when we arrived an hour earlier.

It is a long time since we’ve both been to a salon, maybe 5 years. See one of our best friends is a hair dresser and we have our hair done at home. So this experience was a real mid week treat. I see going to the salon a real luxury and I’m not going to lie; I was excited to have my head massaged while having my hair washed.

The Energy Blow Dry is a little different from your bog standard normal blow dry. It includes a personalised consultation to find out which products will suit your hair the best.

You go through a quick questionnaire about what you like about your hair and what you don’t. It also includes questions to do with hair length and if it is damaged etc. From this there is some wizardy and your unique Energycode is identified. From your Energycode you get a personalised selection of products that are used throughout your blow dry. This means that your new shiny Energy blow dry should last longer then a few hours and feel rather fabulous.

Ok so did I enjoy the blow dry experience? Yes I did. My hair is always a challenge, it is very fine but there is a lot of it. It is also oily and as I have a full fringe it can look greasy in a matter of hours. Kathryn’s hair on the other hand is thick, has a bit of a curl and there is lots of it. Two totally different hair types and one blow dry doesn’t normally mix. However as the Energy Blow Dry is personalised we both ended up with the same treatment but totally different results.

I got bouncy waves that I can report lasted pretty well. I had to give the ones at the back a quick tweak with my tongs the next morning as they had dropped a little. But hello super fine hair, it was always going to happen. Kathryn reported back that her straight bouncy blow dry lasted perfectly and still felt really soft the next day.

Honestly I never thought I’d be a blow dry kinda gal. Normally I end up just quickly straightening my hair before going on a night out. But if I was going somewhere special I think that i’ll be taking a trip back to HOB Salons for a little extra pampering.

Location and Treatment

HOB Salons
12 Duncan Street,
Leeds,
West Yorkshire
LS1 6DL

Energy Blow Dry £25 with selected stylists

There is another little secret that I will let you into – HOB Salons in Leeds offers NHS employees a 20% discount! Now if that doesn’t tempt you into a post work Energy blow dry I don’t know what will.

*I was lucky enough to get to tryout the Energy Blow Dry for free but all opinions are my own, honest and belong to my sassy blow dry

April 7, 2017

Bulgogi Grill Korean BBQ – Leeds

Bulgogi Grill is a Korean Table BBQ place in Leeds and I think it may have changed my life a little bit. It’s almost hidden next to Smoke in the Merrion Centre. Formally known as ‘The Arena Quarter’.

This was my first experience of Korean BBQ and I am not sure what I was expecting but I’ll be going back. I’m gonna say that it is not vegan friendly but there is plenty of fish options for vegetarians.

You’re seated at a table with a hot plate in the middle and a huge over head extractor fan. This is because you cook the meat right in front at you at your own table. We went at lunch on a Saturday and the menu is limited but it was only £11.95 each. What a bloody bargain. The portions are huge and really we could have shared but we decided to indulge. I didn’t finish all my beef though.

We were given some plastic tongs as our chopstick skills weren’t quiet up to scratch, the waitress even gave us a quick tutorial haha! You basically cook your meat then wrap it in a lettuce leaf with rice and some veg. Voila.

Would I go again?

Yes but I think I’d stick to a lunch time for the time being. For less than £15 I had an amazing lunch and a glass of pop. (Lunch runs from 12 to 2.30 Tuesday to Sunday). The evening menu is £24.95 pp I’ve yet to try it, maybe one day I will do but I’m not sure I could even eat that much.

Have you tried Korean BBQ?

March 19, 2017

Barista School at 200 Degrees – Leeds

I attended Barista School at 200 Degrees Coffee in Leeds and learnt a whole lot about coffee as well a few tricks to making the perfect latte. Leeds is really stepping up its game in the more unusual activities that you can find hidden in even the most unexpected places; like coffee shops.

I’m going to put this out there now, I am a decaf kinda girl. Caffeine under no stretch of the imagination agrees with me. Luckily 200 Degrees caters for the decaf brigade if you book a class in advance at Barista School and let them know.

The Barista School starts with our skilled barista how many times can I fit barista into a sentence? teaching you about the wonders of the coffee bean. Not to give too much away but I left feeling much more informed about my coffee choice. The class normally last 3 hours but we did the slightly shorter version lasting around 2 hours.

Part of Barista School is getting all clued up on the history of coffee. The regions that coffee is grown, how it is harvested and then turned into the coffee we know today. The different flavours, there are over 1200 flavours of coffee compared to the 800 in wine, so you really can become a coffee connoisseur. Once we learnt the theoretical side of coffee we got to test out the fancy espresso machines and try our hand at latte art.

I paired up with Gina from CultureBean and we got to work attempting to make a fancy coffee or 5. It is much more difficult than it looks. Getting a good creme, texturing the milk and having a good pouring technique, is all important. It took a fair few attempts and we made a mess more than once.

If you’re a coffee fan, this is the perfect way to spend an afternoon. I was with a group of local bloggers and we all had a great time not only drinking coffee but also learning about our friendly morning pick me up.

So I successfully completed Barista School and even got a certificate to prove it!

February 24, 2017

Chida Cantina Leeds Newest Mexican

It’s no secret that I love Mexican food and a Taco is the way to my heart, ok throw in a Margarita and I am truly yours. So this week I went along to the Black Swan for the preview evening of CHIDA Cantina Leeds Newest Mexican.

CHIDA Cantina is going to be opening on the old Sandinista site on Belgrave Street in Leeds. It’ll be opening March 10th and I am going to recommend that you go and check them out, because well I most definitely will be doing.

We were welcomed with a CHIDA Margarita and the menu to peruse while we took our seats. I’m not going to lie, I am not a massive Tequila fan. I would normally head straight for the Gin but this was different. It was fruity, sweet and had none of the burn that I would normally associate with Tequila.

I enjoyed everything I tried. Some of the combinations of toppings made me wonder what they would be like, but who’d have thought Chicken and Mango would go together so well? The Yucatan Chicken was up there with one of the best Tacos I’ve tasted outside Southern California!

One of the other surprises of the menu was the Duck. Now this was something of a cross between Mexican and Chinese crispy Duck. It was bloody lovely, the duck fell apart, the pickle complimented it amazingly sat along side a the lime aioli. This as a sharing taco board was exceptional, a perfect size for 2 if not 3 depending on how hungry you were.

Now to accompany all your tacos a Margarita is obviously needed. This was Tommy’s Margarita featuring Ocho Blanco Tequila and Persian Lime juice it was light, refreshing and it complimented the heat of some of the dishes with sweetness. If I wasn’t driving I’d have definitely had another if not 2 more.

Lets Taco ’bout it …

*Whats a post about Tacos and Margaritas without a pun?

January 11, 2017

Lunch at The Cat’s Pyjamas – Leeds

I think most people in Leeds know about the Indian Street food place in Headingley with the quirky name ‘The Cat’s Pyjamas‘. If you don’t you should check them out asap. And to make it even easier they’ve just opened a restaurant on East Gate near the new fancy Victoria Gate.

I’ve been a couple of times before in Headingley but never to the new restaurant, they quietly opened a week before Christmas I think and Kevin had never been before. So this was a perfect birthday lunch spot. Hello 27 years old and filling my face with as much Indian food as I dared on a Sunday afternoon.

We chose a window seat *hi Kevin, spread out over 2 tables and ordered. We started with poppadoms and a pickle tray with a never ending supply of mango chutney yum, onion bhajis and seekh kebab. Then for our mains we had potato curry, lamb rogan josh, garlic naan and pulao rice. Yes we over ordered. But what is a birthday lunch without lots of delicious food?

It was refreshingly laid back inside, with background music on at a level that you can talk at but still hear it (oh god I’m almost 30 and now I don’t want the music on too loud what is happening?) Actually I hate loud music I even watch the telly quietly, it drives Kevin mad.

The Cat’s Pyjamas also do a large selection of craft beers if you’re into that kind of thing. I’m not a massive beer fan but had a good (read large) glass of rose and Kevin sampled their none alcoholic beer selection as he was driving. He recommends the Jever, it was 0.5% and £3 a bottle and apparently much nicer than becks blue.

Yup, Im a sucker for the vintage look and fairy lights, I really liked how they’ve done out the inside. In fact I took a fair few photos just because but I can’t for the life of me remember what used to be in this space. Half of me wants to say the old British Gas showroom, but I’m sure thats a few doors up. Any Leeds locals remember?

Now I’ve written this post, I really want to take a trip back one day after work. The best bit is I could take everyone, they cater really well for vegetarians, vegans and the gluten free among us, I think they even have some gluten free beer. A coeliacs dream. I actually had a vegan meal (except a bit of naan) without even realising it and it was indeed all bloody lovely.

I will most definitely be returning to The Cat’s Pyjamas in the near future but maybe not ordering a starter as well as 2 sides to go with my main I was somewhat rather full.

It’s quickly becoming one of my firm favourites have you tired it yet?

January 9, 2017

A Photo an Hour Birthday Addition

Happy 27th Birthday too me! I thought it would be an excellent idea to do my first photo an hour on my birthday. HA great idea Michelle! Will you ever learn?

This was the first time in 5 years that I wasn’t working on my birthday so had an epic lie in then popped out into Leeds for food and a drink. Since I’ve been declaring it my birthday weekend for 2 days already, I was lucky enough to be chauffeured by Kevin meaning I could enjoy a glass of wine.

10am

11am

12pm

1pm/2pm

3pm/4pm

5pm

So I’m now sat here waiting for a takeaway to come and realising that I’m not going to take any more photos today because 1. I want to enjoy the rest of my Birthday Evening before I go back to work tomorrow. 2. I’m sat in my jamas on the sofa wrapped in a blanket. 3. My camera battery is dead.

Cheers!

Here’s to 27! Lets see what this year brings!

December 29, 2016

Going For Brunch Alone in Olive & Rye

We’re in that funny bit of time between Christmas and New Year. It is where time seems to disappear and days seem to merge into one another. This year seems somewhat worse then normal, maybe because Christmas was on a Sunday and we got that weird extra Bank Holiday day.

So to combat the Netflix binge, the cabin fever that sets in after 3 days of not leaving the house and the 6 days of friends and family visiting. I escaped for brunch at Olive & Rye in the Queens Arcade.

Sometimes it is all you need to get out for a few hours, have a brew and be in your own company. I know this can be daunting and I’ve yet to ever go for a full restaurant meal on my own but coffee or tea in a cute cafe seems like a compromise.

Olive & Rye has only been open 6 weeks or so, it is a Deli but has a cafe/restaurant attached. I’m sure most people in Leeds have tried Hepworth’s Deli, they do amazing all day brunch and their wine selection isn’t to be moaned at. This means obviously I had to frequent Olive & Rye as it is also run and owned by the same Joe Hepworth of Hepworth’s Deli, so this was on my radar ever since I saw it pop up on Facebook.

I had a portion of Chorizo Baked Beans on Sourdough Toast and it was a rather nice 11am pick me up with a cuppa tea. I was going to go with a fancy coffee but since I already had my caffeine hit while shopping earlier tea it was.

It was empty when I arrived and I got seated quickly and meant I could take a pretty interior shot. I think the combination of a weird Bank Holiday Tuesday and it not been quiet lunch meant that I got to eat in peace and make plans in my notebook without the hustle of a busy cafe. When I asked the waiter though he said it does get pretty busy with the lunch time crowd.

I’ll be more than likely visiting again soon, I want to try more of the menu and maybe one of the events they do on an evening. It’s somewhere that I’d also go with my Mum if we were going shopping on a weekend, waiter service is a massive bonus and makes it feel that bit nicer then a greasy spoon and going to order at the till.

I swear at some point a few years ago I had visited every coffee place and restaurant in Leeds. Now I can’t keep up with new places that are opening. And yes thats pretty amazing.