Dakota Grill Leeds

Smart, sophisticated and chic, with a private terrace for cocktails and alfresco brunch, being part of a fancy hotel mini-chain as it is, Dakota Grill caters for every drinking and dining possibility – from the full breakfast offer right through to after-dinner digestifs.

There’s a tasting menu if the pressure to choose becomes overwhelming – and this Taste of Dakota even has a wine-pairing option to help take that particular pain away as well. Still, if you know your steaks, you may as well go straight to the “from the grill” section of the à la carte. In ascending order, there’s ribeye, fillet, sirloin, Chateaubriand and côte de boeuf; there’s plenty to go with, also: wild mushrooms, a fried hen’s egg, whipped bone marrow… and sauces include Béarnaise, peppercorn and blue cheese. Potato accompaniments are found separately, under sides, with truffle and Parmesan fries, triple-cooked chips, Jersey Royals, aoili and crispy onions featuring. Steak averse, then alternative meats include spring lamb rump and shank (this menu was in May) with asparagus, nettle and lamb fat rösti, and corn-fed chicken with Hen of the Woods, new leeks, Yorkshire Cheddar and black truffle “mac & cheese”, complete with quotemarks. Tread carefully. Starters include duck from Thirkleby in the Dales, with lovage, and North Yorkshire Easingwold pork belly, with kohlrabi, spring radish and chimichurri. God’s own country’s finest continues with Yorkshire chorizo accompanying the grilled cod and crispy Lindisfarne oyster, while trout is from the North Sea and the shellfish in the curry hails from the east coast. Vegetarians and vegans are fine if they don’t mind a bit of foraged fayre: all three mains include funghi, wild garlic or nettles.

Continuing the theme is Yorkshire rhubarb cheesecake with elderflower and meringue, while some of the other desserts of interest include a lemon curd doughnut and a butterscotch tart. British cheeses with chutneys is another possibility.

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