It was mine and Martin's seven year anniversary the week before last, and we wanted to go out and celebrate with a nice meal. It's been ages since we had a fancy meal together, so what better time than then? We were struggling of places to think of, when Martin remembered his dad going to a restaurant called Shears Yard not too long ago, and he highly recommended it as a more than suitable restaurant for our anniversary meal. So, all dressed up, we went over to see what all the fuss was about.




Nestled in The Calls on Wharf Street, me and Martin have actually visited before - but it was a fish and chip restaurant back then, called Livebait. The building changed hands, and after several months of hard work, reopened its doors as Shears Yard in August 2013. This fairly new[bxA] restaurant is actually the sister of the famous Arts Café that opened a decade earlier - so it has got a lot to live up to, if what I hear about the café is anything to go by! Calling themselves an "independent kitchen and bar", with "a contemporary yet relaxed space", this restaurant manages to create a friendly, welcoming atmosphere yet serve food that one could happily pay thrice over for. The decor is very modern; clean edges, exposed brick walls and light bulbs with relatively plain wooden tables. Whilst it is deceptively simple, it is clear to me that a lot of time, care and effort was put into this; the decor allows for the food to stand out from its surroundings, meaning that it gets your full attention whilst eating.





We first arrived a little after 4pm; we were trying to find out online when they were open for dinner, but we could not find that information anywhere. As it turned out, dinner was to start at 5:30pm, so we left and came back for just after that time. After checking to see if we had a reservation (We didn't - it's advisable to book, especially at weekends), we were seated straight away at a table in the centre of the dining room by a very friendly waitress, whose name I sadly didn't manage to get. At this time the restaurant was empty, save for a group that had seated themselves at the bar. It did feel a bit strange to be eating alone, as it were, but as the meal continued the restaurant was soon full of people. No sooner had we sat down, we were brought a bread board complete with some garlic butter - an unexpected touch that was very much appreciated as we struggled to decide on what to eat! To drink, we were both pleased to see that the local Yorkshire Lager was available on tap, alongside other recognisable beer names. We ordered a pint of that each, along with a jug of water, which were both brought to our table swiftly.




The menu list is small upon first glance, however by the time we had made it to the end we couldn't decide on what to pick! Everything sounded fantastic - each dish sounded dynamic and exciting, and I honestly would have loved to have tried everything on the menu. Sadly, I only had room for the one meal and opted for the pressed ham hock, pickled spring vegetables, apple, piccalilli sauce and pork popcorn to start. Martin decided to go for the duck liver parfait and homemade duck "ham", black pudding brioche, white onion chutney & blackberry gel, which sounded equally delicious. However delicious they sounded, however, was nothing compared to the real thing. Oh, my! The presentation was spot on, and the quality of the food used in the dishes was clear for all to see. My ham hock was so smooth and creamy that it melted in the mouth, and the tangy pickled vegetables complemented this perfectly. The pork popcorn was the icing on the cake, providing the much needed crunch and talking point for the dish. As for Martin, he was full of awe at his black pudding brioche; light, fluffy and full of flavour, and he even declared his white onion chutney to be delicious - he normally can't stand onions in the slightest, so it must have been tasty!




After devouring our starters, we had very high hopes for our main courses - which again, despite the seemingly small selection on the menu, was surprisingly difficult to choose from. After much deliberation, I went for the local corn fed chicken breast and leg, crab and lobster fritter, sweetcorn and chorizo salsa with lobster mayonnaise. Martin was having an even harder time deciding, but decided to go for the pan fried hake fillet, smoked potato gnocchi, Jerusalem artichoke puree, purple sprouting broccoli and brown shrimp butter. We also ordered some triple cooked chips and seasonal spring vegetables to go on the side. Despite not listing it on the description of the dish, my main arrived scattered with (presumably) more pork popcorn - which suited me right down to the ground! The chicken was cooked to perfection, with the meat sliding right off the bone. The crab and lobster fritter was so tasty, that I really had to force myself to savour it and not eat it all at once. It worked extremely well with the meat on the dish, in both texture and flavour. Along with the rich and delactable sweetcorn and chorizo salsa, all of these elements made for a wonderfully comforting dish that I could eat time and time again, and never tire of it. Martin said that his hake was the best fish he'd ever had (Which is really quite the compliment, he loves fish!), and the gnocchi had just the right amount of smokiness - which I can definitely confirm as I managed to steal one! Also, I have never seen him devour his vegetables so fast; the broccoli was assuredly a vegetable that he could very much get along with. As for the sides, the vegetables were fresh, crisp and sweet, with the sugar snap peas being a firm favourite of mine. The triple cooked chips - well, what can I say. Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, and delicious all the way through - the way that all chips should be.




Finally, it was time for us to move onto the dessert menu; the starter and main had just left enough room for us to squeeze something sweet in! For us, this was an easy choice after the difficulty of deciding on the previous two courses; the just warm honey and treacle tart and lemon curd ice cream for me, with Martin excitedly choosing the malted chocolate mousse, salted popcorn brittle and dark ale anglaise. Anything with ale in, and Martin is pretty happy! When they arrived, upon first inspection my dessert seemed a little on the small side (What can I say, I have a major sweet tooth); however, by the time I'd finished it I realised that the portion size was just right. True to the description, it was "just warm" and all the better for being so, as it allowed the sweet, dense and rich tart to be enjoyed to its full capacity. The lemon curd ice cream - served with an extra drizzle of lemon curd sauce - struck the perfect balance between sweet and sour, and didn't overpower the tart too much. Having had my share of popcorn for the evening, the brittle turned out to be the highlight of the dish for Martin, being satisfyingly thick and crunchy with just the right amount of bitterness from the salt. The chocolate mousse and ale anglaise also didn't disappoint; it was an unusual combination, but inspired as they seemed to be made for each other - bringing an almost savoury touch to what could have been an overwhelmingly sickly dessert.

For the whole meal, drinks included, the bill came to just over £80 - which seemed like a very fair amount considering the amazing food that we had just eaten. The service was pretty good for a restaurant that is still fairly new; mindful without being overbearing, and nothing was too much trouble. The atmosphere was fairly relaxed, yet a sense of occasion was weaved throughout the heart of the restaurant, with acute attention to detail. Me and Martin were unanimous in our opinion that this was the best meal that we had eaten in a long time - and by far and away the best "fancy" restaurant that we had ever been to. Even though its location is a little out of the way for most, it really is worth the extra few minutes walk - Shears Yard manages to get it right from start to finish and we will certainly be visiting again.