Leeds Indie Food Festival 2022 announces tasty line-up including Stuzzi, Ox Club and Kirkstall Brewery events

Leeds Indie Food (LIF) has announced the tasty line-up for its mini-festival, as well as launching a new website with stories from the local independent sector.

LIF 2022 kicks off on May 19, which marks the beginning of 10 days of unique experiences, events and collaborations from some of the best indie food and drink businesses in the city.

Highlights include a meeting of minds between Ox Club and Kirkstall Brewery, who are joining forces to lay on an exclusive tasting menu filled with Yorkshire produce and beers old and new.

Rolling Social Events is also set to team up with Starward Whisky and The Tetley to put on a unique supper club experience, and again with Plantation Rum and B******s Bistro for rum-based shenanigans at Grindhouse on Upper Briggate.

Handmade pasta specialists Sarto will team up with Latitude for an evening of exquisite food and drink.

The evening, set to take place on May 25, will include a five-course meal paired with aperitifs, wines and digestifs.

Exclusive collaborations are just the start of this year’s impressive LIF programme.

It also includes a vegan yoga and brunch event at The Tetley on May 21, where lovers of mindful movement can focus on breath as well as breakfast.

‘Parts Unknown: A hammage to Anthony Bourdain’ will be presented by Friends of Ham.

Inspired by Bourdain's trips to Spain and Italy, a five-course tasting menu will be paired with various wines, beers and cocktails

Italian cuisine Stuzzi will host an evening of ‘zero miles dining’.

Celebrating the host of local independent businesses which supply Stuzzi on a weekly basis, produce will be provided by Yorkshire farms, producers, foragers and farmers.

And Bao fans will be treated to one of Little Bao Boy’s infamous Laksa evenings.

The all-new LIF website has also landed, created to not only promote the events on offer as part of the festival, but also to host a hub for Leeds’ independent businesses all year round.

The site will host everything from columns and competitions to interviews, opinion pieces and sneak previews - informing food fans and traders on all things indie in the city.

LIF will also be announcing further initiatives for the hospitality sector in the city, including promoting topics such as mental health in the industry and healthier eating.

A new restaurant week plus an annual celebration are also set to be announced soon.

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The founder of LIF, Simon Fogal, said: "Like all hospitality businesses, we pivoted constantly as we went from our annual festival in May to signposting people to indies, creating supportive merch, hampers, magazines and more.

"We listened to businesses and helped initiate Chow Down at Temple Arches.

"The time has come to start back, telling our story and raising the profile of some of the smaller indies as well as the bigger boys, really trying to put Leeds on this map.

"The mini-festival is here but we are planning so much more, we have set ourselves some big goals and are planning a lot of initiatives too.

"We want to celebrate indie culture too, having a thriving indie food scene helps a city tell a story, so we want to strengthen this part.

"To get involved (everyone is welcome) just contact us via our website.”