All the best places to get your caffeine fix in Leeds.
It's no secret at Leeds is fuelled by caffeine, especially given there are no less than 110 different coffee stores and within a short walk from the city centre. 2021 brought the closure of some of our favourite coffee spots, but plenty more reopened to revive the caffeine scene.
Here are our favourite openings of the year so far.
What was formerly Rum and Reason on Merrion Street was taken over by Nam Song Caphe back in June. The new cafe and restaurant has since been serving up authentic Vietnamese coffees, bahn mi baguettes, bowls of pho and more. On the drinks front, there’s some proper Vietnamese coffee to be enjoyed here. Ca phe trung – a Hanoi speciality made with condensed milk and egg yolk mix – is a house favourite, but can also be taken without for those who don’t like the sound of egg in their coffee.
A new cake shop opened inside an industrial mill unit in Stanningley, Leeds back in late May. Called Soph’s Cakes Leeds, it’s the brainchild of ex-professional dancer Sophie O’Connell – who’s had the unit for over a year but has only just been able to open now. Customers can enjoy a good range of sweet treats like cupcakes and full-size creations, alongside coffees and savoury pastries from 2-6pm Monday to Wednesday, and 9.30am-2pm on Saturdays.
A new wellbeing cafe with a focus on improving people’s mental health opened in Leeds earlier this year. Called Better Days, it’s located inside the Grand Arcade and sets itself apart from other bars and cafes in the area by offering dedicated (and free) classes in improving wellbeing. Better Days offers free support to everyone who visits and, according to owner Vicky Fytche, is the only place of its kind in Leeds- and we're so excited to see something so important pop up in our city.
The small Headingley coffee shop opened earlier this year and the little shop really is the epitome of independent coffee. There’s a new selection of cakes and baked goods each day and the store stocks whatever seems right. There’s always variation: whether it’s the morning choice of bagels or the ever-changing choice of hot chocolates, you’re guaranteed to be greeted with a smile and good vibes, which is all we can really ask from our local coffee shop.
After some serious rebranding, the team behind Fettle opened, Fint. Housed in the same space as its predecessor on Leeds’ leafy Great George street, the owners have rebranded following a period of closure – and we were really excited to see them back, albeit in a new guise. Fettle was known and loved for its understated, laid-back cafe-meets-restaurant vibe, and whilst the space has reemerged with a new name it seems that its overall aesthetic still holds up. The difference? There’s now more of a restaurant focus- but that shouldn't stop you popping in for a great cup of coffee.
A sweet lockdown success story and delicious coffee shop on wheels, Mister Coffee started serving locals just two months ago. There's fresh hot coffee made from an arabica and robusta blend, and Mister Coffee is also has pastries, sandwiches, pies and more on board. There is even fresh cannoli to snack on and brownies from locally-renowned bakery Brown and Blond.
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 -
27th December 2021 
