One of the UK's best cocktail bars is hosting a sandwich kitchen with a unique menu of simple, but wholesome dishes that have been completely reinvented.
Beloved Roland's was recently placed in the prestigious list of 'Top 50 cocktail bars in the UK', but the bar has long been a favourite for Leeds locals.
The cocktail bar effortlessly fuses laid-back drinking with quality ingredients, killer cocktails and an incredible sun-trapped beer garden on the rooftop: there really isn't anything else quite like it in Leeds.
Whilst many frequent here for the inside-knowledge on Margaritas, or want to sample the award-winning drinks menu, the kitchen here is quickly becoming a stand-alone reason to head over to the Call Lane watering hole.
Roland's is one of the UK's top 50 cocktail bars. / Image: The Hoot Leeds
Taking over the kitchen here is Don't Feed The Dog: a kitchen leading the 'sandwich revolution' with a small, but carefully considered menu of hoagies, subs and rolls.
Three sandwiches and four small plates: that's all they need to keep you coming back.
The sarnies here couldn't be further from your boring ham and margarine combos: served with seemingly endless toppings, the flavours are unique blends you're unlikely to have heard of before.
Mushroom Bahn Mi Sandwich. / Image: The Hoot Leeds
Take the Mushroom Bahn Mi for instance, the vegan delight is made up of crispy fried oyster mushrooms with peanut butter, pickled daikon, carrots, fresh mint, fresh coriander, fresh chilli, peanuts and Sriracha mayo- delish.
The meaty alternatives are just as flavoursome: the Buffalo Chicken Sub comes with Panko crumb chicken breast, Franks hot sauce, blue cheese sauce, shredded lettuce and pickled: a simple but delectable fusion of classic sandwich toppings.
The Bunga Bunga is the only remaining sarnie and comes with a serious dedication to the Italian foodie scene. Think Italian cured meats, mozzarella cheese, Guardinera, shredded romain lettuce, cheese crack, drizzled with mayo.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Whilst Don't Feed The Dog is known for its standout sandwich selections, the side dishes deserve their own bragging rights.
There's even more Korean-style fried oyster mushrooms served without the slices of bread, with a dipping vegan hot sauce, as well as 15 hour cooked chips: which come as wafer thin layers of potato pressed with butter then cut into fat chips.
Served with a sage and parsley salsa verde, these carbs sit perfectly alongside the wackier options like deep-fried olives stuffed with oregano cream cheese.
Korean-style fried oyster mushrooms / Image: The Hoot Leeds
If that's not enough: there's breaded black pudding served with mustard mayo. Named black pudding bonbons, these tiny balls of meat are unlikely to be found on any other menu around Leeds- but that doesn't mean that they shouldn't be.
Served Wednesday - Sunday, serious sandwich conesseuirs and casual foodies alike will be obsessed with this one.
To get your hands on a hoagie, sub, roll or test out the sides, Don't Feed The Dog can be found inside Roland's five days a week until their stock runs out. Alternatively, you can preorder your sarnies to guarantee yourself a sarnie on the Don't Feed The Dog website.
Feature Image- The Hoot Leeds
Eats
Get Baked’s viral ‘Bertha’ cake has a sister on the way – and she sounds just as cheeky
She's big, she's green and she's ready to ruin your figure.
A lot of you will have seen the viral ‘Bertha’ cake by Leeds born beloved sweet treat specialists Get Baked.
They recently opened another site in Manchester's Northern Quarter, where queues literally formed round the block of hungry punters wanting to get their hands on the infamous sugary treats.
And now it's going to happen all over again, as they've recently unveiled their newest flavour which is sure to go down a storm.
We’ll give you a hint: it’s a current food and drink trend that’s about as big as Bertha herself – it’s not matcha, it’s not hot honey (duh), and it’s not Guinness…
Images: Get Baked
Yes—scratch that; HELL YES!Get Baked is set to welcome Bertha’s equally beautiful twin sister, and she’s officially a pistachio girlie.
Having started out life simply as ‘Bruce’, after taking inspiration from the iconic scene from Matilda, this thing has become a phenomenon in its own right, and who doesn’t like more flavours of a good thing?
Probably one of the biggest foodie crazes going at the minute, thanks to the popularity of pistachio cream, cookies, lattes and the similar social media sensation that is the ‘Dubai Pistachio Bar' people are rather fittingly going nuts for this particular flavour of almost absolutely anything.
With that in mind, the Leeds-born bakery and dessert shop – founded by Rich Myers over in Headingley back in 2011 – have shown no hesitation in hopping on the bandwagon and creating a new twist on their own viral menu item.
Teasing the full details in a post on their Instagram this week, they wrote: “What’s big, green, and is going to destroy your life in a couple of weeks’ time? Pistachio Bertha. Strictly limited to 5,000 slices. Coming oh so soon. GB.”
In case you were wondering just how mad those with a sweet tooth could possibly go for a slice of cake, just look at the recent queues when they finally launched in Manchester city centre:
Speaking on the grand opening here on our turf and his partner Amy’s hometown, Myers said simply: “Manchester, what a launch. Thanks for much for the warm welcome. Stay baked.”
The Swine That Dines announces the official opening date of its brand new restaurant
Clementine Hall
Much-loved Leeds Bistro The Swine Bistro, formerly known as The Swine That Dines, has moved to a bigger space in Headingley.
Although it’s gone through a few name changes over the years since launching as The Greedy Pig cafe in 2012, this independent spot has long been a firm favourite for Leeds locals for some time now.
Run by chef couple Jo and Stu Myers, they’ve been operating out of North Street where it’s all about cooking seasonal produce simply and with an added ‘little bit of sunshine’.
But now Swine Bistro has moved up over to Headingley, taking up a unit previously occupied by Jam hairdressers on Otley Road.
Image: Supplied
And the time has finally come for them to open their doors, as they announce their first service will take place on Friday 4 April with bookings open from today, Thursday 20 March.
The Myers will be welcoming head chef Kirsty Cheetham, who won Observer Food Monthly’s Best Sunday Lunch award in 2018 and 2022 when she ran The Queen o’t owd Thatch in South Milford, Leeds.
The expanded space in the restaurant has allowed the team to curate a bigger wine list which will include natural wines from Wayward Wines and Latitude Wines as well as local beers from Ilkley Brewery and Horsforth Brewery.
Image: Supplied
The team remains passionate about locally sourced ingredients and has partnered with a variety of Yorkshire suppliers including R&J Yorkshire for its fresh meat, Tarbetts fishmonger, cheese from George & Joseph cheesemongers and beans from micro roaster, Chipp Coffee Co.
Jo Myers, co-owner of the Swine Bistro said: “It’s taken a huge amount of time and effort to realise our dream to revamp what was previously a hairdresser into a fully functioning kitchen and restaurant. It’s been a wild ride but we’re excited, and slightly nervous, to finally open our doors.
“We love the vibe in Headingley and the time out has allowed us to have fun with our menu as well as take part in lots of essential taste testing of ingredients and drinks from our brilliant local suppliers. We can’t wait to welcome guests into our new restaurant!”
Sophie Smith -
18th April 2022 
