Sunday 4 September 2011

Harvey Nichols Fourth Floor Cafe Leeds

Myself and my girlfriend decided to go out for dinner, during the discussion of where to go we decided on the fourth floor cafe at Harvey Nichols. It is a venue we have often thought about dining at, but for one reason or another never made it to until now.
We were seated in the corner adjacent to a large window that had a great view over the city's skyline, the restaurant changed from a very light sunlit space into a lovely intimate candlelit venue as the sun set into darkness over Leeds, there is also a terrace that you can sit out on during the day that would be wonderful on a lovely summer's day.

Amuse Bouche - Mozzarella Ball with Tomato Relish

Carpaccio of Venison, Herb Flat Bread, Celeriac, Lemon and Micro Salad

Seared Red Mullet, Rocket and Fennel Puree, Marinated Courgette, Roast Red Pepper Dressing

Roast Wharfedale New Season Lamb Rack, Saffron Braised Chickpeas, Dukkah Spiced Aubergine, Harrisa and Lemon Dressing

Roast Cod Loin, Jerusalem Artichoke Puree, Trompette Mushrooms, Blackberry Dressing

Heritage Potatoes with Basil Oil, Hand Cut Chips with Aioli

Lemon Trio - Lemon Pannacotta, Lemon and Polenta Cake, Limoncello and Lemon Curd Semifreddo

Kirsch Cherry and Vanilla Mascarpone Mousse Tartlet, Valrhona Chocolate Sauce


We ordered a bottle of the house red and our food, after ordering we were presented with the mozzarella ball with tomato relish amuse, this was fairly tasty but nothing really special to be honest.


Next up came our starters, mine was the carpaccio of venison, this was done well but slightly bland tasting as though something was missing, looking back at the menu, my photo, and my memory, this dish was supposed to be served with pecorino shavings which I am sure did not appear on the plate.
My girlfriend's starter was the seared red mullet, this was delicious with well balanced flavours, the accompaniments were absolutely perfect.


Onto our mains, my main was the lamb which was a beautiful dish, the North African inspired accompaniments worked wonderfully well. My girlfriend had the roast cod, again this was very, very, good, it was well put together and the fish was cooked perfectly.
For side dishes we chose the heritage potatoes with basil oil and the hand cut chips with aioli, the potatoes were very nice but the chips were completely out of this world, we both agreed that these were the best chips either of us had tasted in our lives, so despite the fact that this was a £90 dinner at Harvey Nicks our fondest memory will always be those chips!


For desserts I had the lemon trio and my girlfriend had the kirsch cherry dessert, I felt the lemon trio was underwhelming, however, the kirsch cherry was a delicious pudding.


All in all it was a lovely atmosphere, our waitress despite being obviously not greatly experienced was enthusiastic and friendly, the breaks between dishes were excellently paced, the food was mostly very good despite a couple of misses. We will be back and we will be having those chips again!


Harvey Nichols
107 Briggate
Leeds
LS1 6AZ


Telephone: 0113 2048000


Web: http://www.harveynichols.com/restaurants/fourth-floor-leeds/fourth-floor-leeds-cafe