Looking for the best Sunday Lunch in Leeds? Get yourself to The Highland Laddie, trust me you will not find better. It is Stunning!
Technically that could be the end of the review, as everything stated is all you will need to get yourself booked in and enjoy this masterpiece.
They are owned by the same people who brought us The Empire Cafe, which has already established itself as a must go to eating establishment in Leeds City Centre. We have been following with interest the development of The Highland Laddie but events had transpired against us and were only just able to get booked in after. couple of false starts.
But oh my it was certainly worth the wait!
The Highland Laddie Location
You would classify The Highland Laddie as a traditional old school boozer that has been rescued and now serves amazing food.
Sandwiched between Kirkstall Road and Burley Road on the way into town it is now surrounded by the student accomodation blocks that now dominate the Leeds skyline. For reference the postcode is LS3 1LY. Free Parking nearby is pretty plentiful and there are even a few spots right outside the door. Luckily we were visiting outside of student term time and I would think it might be a bit busier when they are back in town.
Due to its nature as a traditional boozer there isn’t loads of room inside and there are a limited amount of tables but they seem to make it work and it adds to the atmosphere in the pub. During summer this is supplemented by an outside seating area that was very popular during our visit.
Highly recommend that you book a table due to both the limited number of tables and how popular it is. They were able to accommodate a couple of walk ins during our visit but during term time this might be trickier.
The Highland Laddie is also dog friendly and there were a few well behaved pooches during our visit including our own Highland Lassie!
The Highland Laddie – The Food
Down to business, so what was the actual food like.
We had a couple of starters to share to get us going. Apologies for the oysters picture I forgot I was an internationally recognised influencer and started eating them before taking a pic!
Got to say the oysters were stunning we had 3 Lindisfarne and 3 Scottish. Two of which were plain, two were spicy (but not overpowering (the ones actually in the picture)) and two had a small pickle onion that worked amazingly. Every flavour supplemented the oysters and were really good!
The sardines also come with a highly recommended too and the pork trotter gravy was stunning I even jokingly asked for some to take home. Needless to say the sardines themselves also tasted lovely and fresh.
Now onto the main event! A picture paints a thousand words and hopefully the ones below do it justice. Nothing drives me madder than not get enough meat with your Sunday Roast and that is not something you could accuse the Highland Laddie of! You get plenty and cooked to perfection. They source their meat from Sykes House Farm in Wetherby so I knew it was going to be amazing as I have used them frequently myself. They were recommended by Franco of Franco’s fame as he uses them and also another amazing Leeds restaurant Sous Le Nez. If you are looking for some top quality meat at pretty good prices you won’t go far wrong by taking a visit to Sykes.
Moving onto the trimmings also world class. Yorkshire nice and light, roasties on the crunchy side just how I like them. The peas (I know who cares about peas!) were stunning, cooked it in pancetta and were slightly smashed but were a great side.
We also went for an additional side of Cauliflower Cheese, which comes highly recommended (one serving is perfect for two people.). Generally not a massive fan of Cauliftlower Cheese on a Sunday Roast as I don’t like the collie sauce mixing with the gravy (Don’t Cross The Streams.). But, as you can see this version held its form wonderfully and tasted pretty good too.
The Highland Laddie – Deserts
Must admit am not a massive fan of deserts, but also was absolutely pogged so would struggle anyway. Instead of desert I took The Highland Lassie for a little wonder outside to stretch her legs (and mine!)
On my return they had both been wolfed down and I was met by some very full and contented faces.
The Highland Laddie Conclusion
You can probably guess that it gets a resounding thumbs up. Take it from me you will not find a better Sunday Roast in Leeds. Price wise thought it was reasonable enough for the quality and volume and have paid more for much poorer efforts.
Service was also top notch from the initial welcome to the staff serving behind the bar and especially to the lad that served us Sam, who was great. Hopefully you won’t leave scratching your head as you couldn’t quite work out which famous person he sounded like!
The only downside is that it is already popular and not that big a place. So when you go and love it please keep it to yourself!