Dill & Bay

126 Reviews

Star Travel Rating

5/5

Review type

Things to do

Location

Date of travel

February, 2018

Product name

Dill & Bay

Product country

Rothwell, Leeds

Product city

Rothwell, Leeds

Travelled with

Reasons for trip

A few weeks ago, I was having a quiet lunch with friends in one of the nation’s better known chain pubs when a young woman seated at a nearby table began to cough and then choke.

As people at her table began to panic I stepped forward to help but was beaten to it by an off-duty medic who performed the Heimlich manoeuvre several times on her, before the offending item was ejected and she began to recover.

Normality was resumed and the young woman seemed to have no lasting adverse effects from her ordeal.

It just shows that the most innocuous of occasions can have dramatic effects and it was fortunate that people with training stepped in to help.

You will have no such worries should you visit the Dill and Bay restaurant as the owner/chef is a former, experienced paramedic himself.

With a keen interest in all things food and cooking, Simon Jones and his wife Remmy spent their leisure hours visiting Michelin starred restaurants and fine dining establishments for pleasure. They are my kinda people.

Having attended cookery courses and already a talented chef, as well as appearances on TV’s ‘My Kitchen Rules’ his ambitions in the restaurant trade were heightened.

As a first bold venture, in 2015, the couple put out flyers for four course dinners at their own home which they turned into a pop-up restaurant under the title ‘The Passion Supper Club’. More than 500 meals later, the business was so successful that they looked out for premises in which to establish their first restaurant.

The small town of Rothwell on the outskirts of Leeds is more or less a dormitory town for the cities of nearby Leeds and Wakefield. It has it’s own paved high street with heritage lamp posts and a variety of independent shops, cafes and bars. It is an up and coming place to visit as a destination for shopping and dining.

Just off the high street, Simon spotted a vacant premises and turned it into the Dill and Bay restaurant, opening in November 2016.

It is now an attractive building, white painted to the exterior and on stepping inside, you enter a small lounge with easy chairs and a comfortable sofa. A chandelier lit proceedings.

On our mid-afternoon visit, we didn’t get the chance to try the seats as we were quickly greeted and shown to a table. It was quite busy, which was a good sign.

The floor is dark parquet wood whilst the walls are painted sage green or white. The oak topped white tables give the dining room a fresh, modern feel whilst retaining an intimacy that smaller rooms such as this provide.

There is a separate private dining room for meetings or events and this is like entering a grand drawing room. It features a long, oak table and twin chandeliers.
A very elegant, impressive room.

Our friendly waitress took our order for afternoon tea and offered a choice of coffees and Yorkshire Tea. As the restaurant is advertised as ‘Yorkshire Dining’ (between fine and casual), this was nothing less than would be expected.

Our tiered afternoon tea stand arrived and a picture it looked …(see my attached..er..picture).

Four varieties of sandwiches were first down the hatch and these were, smoked salmon, cucumber and cheese, egg mayonnaise and thick ham with grain mustard. The bread and contents were fresh, not something you get everywhere.
The sandwiches were scattered with fresh and very peppery rocket leaves.

The sweet teeth were satisfied by the fruit scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam, and were followed by chewy (in a good way) chocolate brownies, moist banana loaf and shortbread rounds. All the desserts were decorated with sliced fresh strawberries, grapes, raspberries and blueberries. It all went down very well.

Having perused the lunchtime and evening menus I shall certainly return for more local, seasonal Yorkshire produce which Simon works his magic on. It is clear that there is a passion being expressed here.

As a guide, the evening menu features starters from £5 -£8, mains are from £11 to £17 and desserts are £5 – £6. The wine list has a decent choice by the glass or by the bottle from £15-£18.

At the bar, bottled beers and soft drinks are available, along with a lone draught pump of Leodis, a lovely,4.6% hoppy, premium lager from Leeds Brewery.

We left having been very impressed with the food, the décor, the ambience and the staff and another place on our list of restaurants to return to.

The restaurant is open Wednesday to Saturdays from breakfast to dinner and on Sundays from breakfast to 6pm.
More information and menus can be found at www.dillandbay.co.uk

The sat-nav will show you the way to LS26 0AG.

There is a very large, free car park just across the road behind the roadside buildings and this is signposted off the main street.

Paul

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