Headrow House review: I spent an evening soaking up the sun on a Leeds rooftop - here's what I thought

While it’s easy to miss at street level - a weathered brick building squeezed between shops - once up the stairs, everything completely opens up.

It’s the rooftop that does it. Two terraces stacked discreetly above the Leeds skyline that, by early evening, are golden with light and gently buzzing with people who know they’ve made the right call.

This is what Headrow House gets exactly right: that fleeting northern magic when the weather plays nice and the evening stretches out like it might never end.

Don’t miss a single thing when it comes to news across Leeds, sign up for the Yorkshire Evening Post’s free daily newsletter today

It understands that, in Leeds, sunshine is an event. Office workers loosen collars and skip the gym. Someone turns up with sunglasses they haven’t worn in three years. And everyone drinks like it might snow tomorrow - which, to be fair, it might.

I went for a sauvignon blanc - clean, sharp, and refreshing, which was exactly what I wanted. I took my glass to a table with friends and watched the light pool across the city like honey.

All human life is here. Students in shorts, finance people out of suits, couples who haven’t said anything for 10 minutes and don’t need to. There’s the sound of ice settling in a glass and always the distant pulse of music that feels like it’s being piped up from somewhere far below.

Service is brisk and efficient, with staff who keep things moving with minimal drama. Orders are taken quickly, drinks arrive without delay, and tables are cleared as soon as they’re empty.

The Ox Club, one floor down, handles the serious business of grilled meat and glowing coals. Up here, a packet of crisps and another glass of something pale is more than enough.

We enjoyed our final round laughing too loudly, jackets draped over chairs we’d forgotten were theirs, before walking down the stairs slowly, back through the dimmer hum of the beer hall, out into the city’s evening traffic.

When the conditions are right at Headrow House - and they’re rarely more right than a warm Thursday evening in July - it becomes something beautiful. A rooftop bar that doesn’t try to be anything more than a rooftop bar. Just a good place to sit, and drink, and feel like you’re exactly where you’re supposed to be.