Where: 1-1A Cross Belgrave Street, Leeds
What we ate: Mini Fish & Chips and Stone baked pizza
Wednesday 2nd October saw me skipping down to Leeds’ Northern Quarter to attend the opening night of the city’s newest music venue: Belgrave Music Hall. Arriving just before 7pm I found rather a long queue snaking around the side of the building, it seemed they weren’t letting anyone in yet due to last minute building work. I was a little concerned about what lay ahead, but upon entering the establishment my worries were soon put to rest. We were greeted with a complimentary drink from the well-stocked bar and settled ourselves down on a luxurious leather sofas which fitted perfectly with the converted warehouse interior. It seemed the tipple of choice of all my fellow guests was lager, however my friend and I opted for wine.
Following the fairly standard offering of drinks I was thrilled to discover the wonderful food on offer. Their in-house ‘Dough Boys’ team were busily creating delicious fresh pizzas with marvellous toppings . It was by far the best pizza I have tasted in Leeds, (not that Crispys offers much competition) and the wild mushroom and pepperoni was nothing short of amazing. To make things even more exciting there was a second kitchen currently occupied by ‘Fish&’, a new Leeds based pop-up street food vendor. They served fabulously presented mini fish and chips with an assortment of batters (original, chilli & lime and pepper). I may be slightly biased as cute food is a favourite of mine, but it really was fabulous. My only criticism would be that the peppered cod was a little too peppery, as I personally I feel certain dishes should be left simple.
Watered and fed, I ascended what felt like an endless flight of stairs to find a spectacular roof terrace giving views of the city that I had never experienced before. The combination of delicious food, an impressive array of musical delights and beautiful views of our wonderful city make Belgrave Music Hall and Canteen somewhere everyone should put on their bucket list of places to visit in Leeds. One thing to note is that Belgrave isn’t the average student haunt and the prices are in accordance with that. You won’t find any double vodka mixers for £2.50 but don’t worry, the pizza will more than make up for it.
You can also read our music preview of Belgrave Music Hall here
Lillie Van Den Berg
Photo: Property of shlur.com