Fat Hippo Leeds review: Knock-out burgers and succulent vegan patties at this quirky Headingley restaurant

Known for its weird and wonderful flavours, the no-frills venue in Headingley has been delivering through lockdown and its outdoor seating was fully booked when we visited, even on a Monday afternoon.

Our friendly waiter talked us through the extensive burger menu, from the classic Fat Hippo with smoked bacon and chorizo, to the adventurous PB&DoubleJ with peanut butter and bacon jam.

All burgers come with two patties and fries or hand cooked chips, which can be upgraded to waffles or sweet potato fries, and there’s five vegan burgers.

After much deliberation we opted for the Swiss Tony - with swiss cheese, smoked bacon, mushrooms, tobacco onion and truffle mayo - and the vegan Bloody Harrelson with a plant-based patty, vegan cheese, smokey mayo, sweet onions and ketchup.

We couldn’t ignore the tempting range of starters and sides, so added the beer-battered cheese balls and southern fried chicken strips.

There’s an impressive range of beers, shakes, desserts and the tempting ‘naughty corner’ - we were driving home, but the boozy slushes delivered to the table next to us gave us serious envy.

The Swiss Tony was a knock-out, my dinner companion had never tried anything like it. The patties were succulent and cooked slightly rare, with a hit of smokiness from the crisp tobacco onions and plenty of gooey Swiss cheese.

My vegan burger was equally as delicious. Veggie burgers are often dry and tasteless, but the plant-based patty was succulent and as ‘meaty’ as it gets, with the sweet onions and ketchup forming a tangy pickle that was a delight.

My only complaint was that the small slab of vegan cheese got lost in the burger, but it was covered in smokey mayo which made up for that.

The gooey deep fried cheese balls were coated with a light and crispy batter and covered with tangy Ranch sauce and my companion’s fried chicken was tender and well-seasoned.

Two burgers and two starters were £35, reasonable for the big portions that arrived. We’ll be running back to Fat Hippo, not just for the flavour-packed food, but for the warm and personable service.

It’s hard to stand out in the increasingly crowded burger market in Leeds but Fat Hippo did just that.

Factfile

Address: 8 Otley Rd, Headingley, Leeds, LS6 2AD

Telephone: 0113 513 5371

Opening hours: Mon-Sun, 11am-10.30pm

Website: www.fathippo.co.uk

Scores

Food: 9/10

Value: 7/10

Atmosphere: 7/10

Service: 8/10

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