Anthony's, Leeds

[YKL]

and why only a swift pint??!?!

[Opson]

'one of my best meals ever',

'one of the meals of our lives'

'i can hardly wait to return here'

and my favourite

'this place pis*es  all over the fat duck'

I don't go to Antonys yet, but if it does piss on the Fat Duck that would make it the joint best restaurant in the world according to a British Magazine. The Fat Duck is the second best restaurant in the world after French Laundry and before El Bulli.

[Gary Marshall]

Anthony's wasn't open when the voting for the restaurant mag survey took place.

I'm sure if they did the survey now it would regain its rightful place

(cue thom to tell us all about this years survey.......)

cheers

gary

[Suzi Edwards]

gary, gary, gary.

stop this, you're going to make me travel to leeds to eat there very soon with more posts like that one.

[Gary Marshall]

feature in the '50 best' edition of restaurant mag too.

gary

[YKL]

Just want to say that I ventured into Anthony's on Sat lunchtime for a self indulgent lunch as a sole diner, and was certainly not disappointed! I'm not able to write a poetic description or review of the food in the way others have, but will give a summary shortly.

The restaurant was actually very quiet, I think Olga explained that whilst they were busy most evenings, particularly towards the end of the week, most people had not cottoned onto the fact that they open on Sat lunchtimes also. So, for any who may be struggling to get a reservation in the evenings, Sat lunchtime could be the way forward!

I have to say it worked in my favour since when I mentioned that I'd heard of the restaurant via egullet and Gary Marshall's rave reviews, that seemed to be some sort of magic password which meant that I was treated to some tasty treats which one would not normally get at lunchtime. I honestly did try to explain that I didn't actually know GM since I only joined egullet a month ago, but I think that with a quiet service, the chef reckoned I was fair game as a culinary guinea pig - and how right he was!

So what did I have? Well, part of the special service was that I was given a pre-starter which looked like it could be the upside down guiness that we've heard so much about. However Olga (who along with Andrea are just simply lovely lovely people!) explained that it was slightly different, with more of a caramel base? Was deliciously rich, sweet without being cloying. And also magically soothed my sore throat. What more could I want? I chose the pig's cheek on jerusalem artichoke as a starter, and it arrived beautifully presented as a huge nugget of sweetly dark and tender meat, balanced on a little mound of shredded and creamy artichokle - what almost looked like remoulade, and very yummy (like I said - not one for the words).

They have a clever trick with the bread, which is that the flavour is provided by varieties of butter (unsalted, parmesan and salmon in my case) rather than different kinds of bread. Suited me fine, when the bread manages to be light and fluffy inside, and with a crust that is crispy and chewy at the same time - why would I want to be distracted by anything else? For the record, the parmesan butter was my favourite - for the way the flavour came through at the end as an unexpected surprise note. It made me want to try it at home - clearly I expect to fail miserably and so will need to go back to get my fix!

Was given a pre-main course treat as well - confit of duck with a chocolate froth / sauce. I may have looked dubious but there was no cause to be - since the meat was tender, juicy and the chocolate was an intriguing note in the background rather than a dominant force. If that ever appears on the menue as a main course - that's what I want!! My actual main was the salmon with potato consomee which ticked all the boxes.

Umm .... and yes I stayed for dessert and coffee as well. So, the next gift from the kitchen was a pre-dessert of (I think) a cinder toffee powder with szechuan pepper, and a pineapple sorbet. First you have some powder, then some sorbet, and repeat until the dish is clean. My tastes buds weren't sharp enough to detect the szechuan pepper, but the pineapple sorbet was fab - clean, fresh and tart. I was definitely a fan, and I don't even normally like pineapple!

Couldn't choose between the apple tarte tatin and the chocolate fondant as dessert (and yes, I did considering ordering both!) - but Andrea steered me towards the latter, and it was a fine choice. It is a good thing that others have waxed lyrical about it - I scoffed it so quickly I wouldn't be able to even try and describe it for you all!

So - that's how greedy I was on Sat lunchtime, and I have every intention of being back. Have been in Leeds for a long time now, and it's nice to know that we have such an exciting addition to the restaurant choices. Will be watching with interest.

Oh dear - only meant to write a quick note - but look what happened. Still, it was fun for me to relive anyway!

cheers

Yin

[Andy Lynes]

I have to say it worked in my favour since when I mentioned that I'd heard of the restaurant via egullet and Gary Marshall's rave reviews, that seemed to be some sort of magic password which meant that I was treated to some tasty treats which one would not normally get at lunchtime.

Its amazing what you can get in Leeds by mentioning Gary Marshall's name.

Yin, thanks for sharing your lunchtime indulgences with us. I'm almost beginning to regret leaving BT before they had another chance to send me to Leeds. It sounds like the only thing wrong with Anthony's is that they were still decorating it the last time I was in town.

[Gary Marshall]

glad you enjoyed it yin

one of the great things about this place is the menu is in constant evolution and tony does tinker regularly and try new dishes, the thing is even the 'tests' are undetectable from the regulars! From your description it sounds like a further evolution of guinness but he does have plenty of other cocktails up his sleeve.

Tony wants the foodie customer, so i'm sure he will have been happy to have an enthusiastic punter to feed on a quiet service.

although let's keep the fact saturday lunches are quiet to ourselves, it's getting very busy on an evening now!

cheers

gary

[Bapi]

.. I honestly did try to explain that I didn't actually know GM

Count yourself very lucky.

Nice review - this is defintely on my list when I venture up North next. Suppose I had better drag Marshall along to show me the ropes.

Cheers

B

[Gary Marshall]

Its amazing what you can get in Leeds by mentioning Gary Marshall's name.

a slap usually

gary

[Andy Lynes]

Read in the context of eGullet, the menu sounds perfectly approachable, but I wonder what the good people of Leeds will make of it as they stop in Boar Lane to give it the once over.

In light of Gary's comments about how busy the place is getting, and, as I won't be up to Leeds for lunch in the very near future, perhaps I should eat my words in the meantime.

[Gary Marshall]

Read in the context of eGullet, the menu sounds perfectly approachable, but I wonder what the good people of Leeds will make of it as they stop in Boar Lane to give it the once over.

In light of Gary's comments about how busy the place is getting, and, as I won't be up to Leeds for lunch in the very near future, perhaps I should eat my words in the meantime.

it's even worse than you think andy,

it's full and there's not even a menu outside yet! (although i'm sure there will be one eventually)

it's all word of mouth and reviews at the moment.

cheers

gary

[YKL]

forgot to say - I think they're in the process of getting a third chef trained up. So hopefully that will reduce the preposterous working hours of Tony at the moment (19 hours according to a previous post?), and even more importantly, expedite the arrival of a full tasting menu.

My stomach awaits!

[daw]

Sunday's (2nd May) Sunday Telegraph Magazine includes a review of Anthony's by Elfreda Pownall.

The score is 8.5/10 and the following quotes are typical:

"For forward looking cooking, head straight for Leeds"

"Eat and remember every mouthful"

"Wear a gratified smile"

Clealy impressed the review concludes "This is confident, delicious and interesting food from a brilliant young chef who will surely be making his way up the Michelin ladder."

David

[Gary Marshall]

does anyone know if this review is available on-line anywhere?

thanks

gary

[Andy Lynes]

It will be here here soon I would imagine.

[MobyP]

No - for some reason the web site doesn't cover the magazine content - they've been running an Aikens series for several weeks which I haven't been able to find. If anyone could help me with that I'd appreciate it!

[Steve Martin]

My wife revisited Anthony's last Saturday lunchtime. Very quiet.

Good cooking, but still a bit stingy. He'll have to bulk up a bit in Yorkshire.

She was back to Harvey Nicks on the Sunday. Better value, she said.

[Gary Marshall]

She was back to Harvey Nicks on the Sunday. Better value, she said.

chalk & cheese though isn't it?

there's always going to be food made to a cost, this is food made to a specification.

if you want bigger portions and plenty of offers, room next door is the place to go.

gary

[Steve Martin]

She was back to Harvey Nicks on the Sunday.  Better value, she said.

chalk & cheese though isn't it?

there's always going to be food made to a cost, this is food made to a specification.

if you want bigger portions and plenty of offers, room next door is the place to go.

gary

We don't compare chalk with cheese.

Anthony is underfeeding his guests and I don't want his business to suffer because of it.

Certainly the chalk at Gagnaire, Bras and even Roellinger was more copious.

You'll also find top floor at Harvey Nicks is more than a sandwich store.

Edited May 12, 2004 by Steve Martin (log)

[Gary Marshall]

She was back to Harvey Nicks on the Sunday.  Better value, she said.

chalk & cheese though isn't it?

there's always going to be food made to a cost, this is food made to a specification.

if you want bigger portions and plenty of offers, room next door is the place to go.

gary

We don't compare chalk with cheese.

Anthony is underfeeding his guests and I don't want his business to suffer because of it.

Certainly the chalk at Gagnaire, Bras and even Roellinger was more copious.

You'll also find top floor at Harvey Nicks is more than a sandwich store.

yawn

there's a restaurant at harvey nicks- who knew?

gary

[Suzi Edwards]

i went to the 5th floor harvey nicks (in london) and was quite pleasently surprised. am *fairly* sure they didn't have anyone who'd done a stage at el bulli in the kitchen, but they made me a very nice thai chicken salad. they have a copy of the menu with a list of everything thats in the dish that people might possibly be allergic to/avoiding (garlic, wheat, dairy etc) so it fitted my detox very well.

it also told me a lot about the type of customer they expect to get in there. places with multi course tasting menus always ask if you have allergies/food you avoid at the start of the meal. they don't have a special menu!

[MobyP]

Fantastic piece in this weekend's Indy on Anthony's.

[Gary Marshall]

That really does give a glimpse of what it's been like at Anthony's in the early months.

i've banged on about the attention to detail, this is probably the most accurate piece written about them that i have seen, i suspect they'll be quite pleased with this.

For about a minute, then they'll get back to work

gary

[MobyP]

I can't believe he's only twenty-blinkin-four.