Food Review Dine at the Mansion

Feel like the Lord and Lady of the manner when you dine at the Mansion

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Food Review: Dine at the Mansion

Before you even arrive at Dine at the Mansion, you’ll be filled with expectations of what the evening will entail. The name in itself conjures images of sophistication and refinement, of lords and ladies dining by candlelight and servants catering to your every whim.

Reassuringly, when we arrive, the reality of the place doesn’t jerk too awkwardly with the daydream. There’s no servants thankfully, just a well turned-out waiter. But looking out of the window from our table in the Mansion’s Garden Room Cafe Restaurant – over the leafy, well-maintained 700-acre grounds of Roundhay Park, with the city skyline in the distance and the clouds turning dusky pink as the sun goes down – it’s easy to imagine you are indeed the master of all you behold.

The Mansion is perfectly positioned along a tree-lined drive in the grounds of Roundhay Park. First built in 1826, the Grade II-listed building was later “acquired for the people of Leeds” in 1871 by Sir John Barran, who was then the mayor of Leeds. In recent years, it had fallen into a state of serious disrepair and was forced to close to the public for almost seven years. But, luckily, it has now been restored to its former glory: a multi-million pound refurbishment programme saw The Mansion reopen for events, weddings and fine dining in 2009.

Now, the freshly-renovated interior of the Mansion’s Garden Room Cafe Restaurant is stylish and chic. It’s a mix of modern and classic: clean lines, polished glass and lime green and chocolate brown fabrics contrast with period details like the grand, swirling filigree featuring on the ceiling.

The restaurant is only open for evening dining on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings. But you can visit any day for lunch, lighter snacks and afternoon tea (not forgetting the special Sunday roast menu). And considering the grand surroundings and the attention to detail evident on the modern English menu, the food isn’t as expensive as you may expect. It’s not exactly cheap either. But for the quality, a two-course meal for £20.50 and three course meal for £26 seems very reasonably-priced. Still, if you’d prefer the experience without the price-tag, there’s the option of an early bird menu from 5:30pm to 7pm.

The team behind the food, including head chef, Mark Dawson, obviously have real integrity. The evening dinner menu changes on a weekly basis depending on seasonal changes, and all ingredients are locally-sourced. For starter, I have a tasty bowl of pea and leek soup, with minted crème fraiche and organic sourdough bread and butter. My partner has the Black Sheep Ale Welsh rarebit on warm sour dough crostinis, with stem ginger and rhubarb chutney. Rarebit is often nothing more than elevated cheese on toast, but this is very creamy and crisp and the chutney is refreshingly biting.

As the starters go down a treat, we’re looking forward to the mains. I go for seafood pie, with mussels, king prawns, salmon and baby capers, topped with a Whitby crab crust and served with summer vegetables in herb butter. It is delicious! A modest portion, typical of quality restaurants, but very filling – and you can’t help but eat slowly to enjoy the flavours and texture. My partner has the top rump steak with Yorkshire chips, served with chargrilled asparagus, béarnaise sauce and roast baby plum tomatoes. It was cooked to perfection and there wasn’t a scrap left on our plates.

And it’s a testament to the quality of the food that we go for dessert not out of the necessity of a still-hungry stomach, but pure indulgence. We share three scoops of Beacon Farm ice cream – vanilla, rhubarb crumble and orange Cointreau – with Harrogate toffee sauce and praline crumble: lip-smackingly good.

Our waiter, Philip, and the assistant manager, Jan Craven, were friendly, attentive and knowledgeable – and both made expert gin and tonics, filled with slices of fresh cucumber and wedges of lime. And no doubt infected with the regal vibe of Dine at the Mansion inspires – and feeling like the lady of the manor – I order another.

Posted on Wednesday 23rd June 2010
SH

Dine at The Mansion

Roundhay Park, Leeds, LS8 2HH

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