Restaurant review: Stampede, Leeds city centre

That’s when standards are low, hunger is high and crowds are fierce.

Around the Tiger Tiger and Pryzm area of Leeds city centre, clubbers pile into places such as McDonald’s and Subway.

But after the arrival of new Jamaican-themed eatery Turtle Bay, late-night partiers are getting better choice and quality when it comes to their post-party binge.

Stampede is the latest to join the ranks, and is hoping to cash in on the nightlife scene.

With a late licence until the wee hours of the morning, and serving up burgers, cheesy fries and the like, we’re pretty sure they’ll be on to a winner.

But how does it stack up in the daytime? We decide to visit on a Saturday afternoon and put it to the test.

The queue is already out the door, but it turns out it is actually customers waiting to place their order at the bar, which is strangely located right next to the entrance.

We shimmy past the hungry rabble and seat ourselves at a table. There is a family birthday party with a group of around 15 customers by the window, including young children.

It’s unexpectedly child-friendly, with balloons and smaller choices for young ones.

The menu is succinct, with ribs, wings and burgers available in different portion sizes. As I go to the bar to place our order, the queue has gone.

There are jars of pork crackling that catch my eye, and I go for the salt and vinegar flavour at £1.75, which gives you a mountain of crunchy crackling. I also order a third- portion of ribs for £5, with Canadian favourite poutine topped with bacon for £4.75.

This is one of just a handful of places in Yorkshire that sells poutine, and I’m excited to try it. My companion goes for a ‘middleweight’ burger for £7 plus chips at £2.50.

The concept is essentially meaty meals in a fast food setting, so the food arrives in branded cardboard trays with plastic cutlery.

It does the food somewhat of an injustice as the ribs are fantastic – meaty and slathered in a sweet, sticky sauce.

The poutine is great too, although not really traditional poutine. Served with cheese curds plus chunks of Red Leicester and cheddar to make it look more appealing, it’s still delicious and will certainly be a hit with late-night partygoers.

My companion is enjoying his burger too, which is also well-cooked and better quality meat than we were expecting.

It turns out that the Stampede owners are also behind Cattlegrid, so they know their meat. Bridging the gap between fast food and a sit-down meal, Stampede seems to be meating the need in Leeds.

Rating: 3/5