The 10 Leeds restaurants recommended by the Good Food Guide 2023 including Salvo's and Stuzzi

The Good Food Guide was founded by Raymond Postgate in 1951 and is the longest-standing guide to dining out in the UK.

By Abbey Maclure

Published 14th Apr 2023, 16:30 GMT

The Guide looks at reader recommendations and tips before one of 30 inspectors is sent out to give their expert assessment on the food and hospitality. Members of the Good Food Guide Club can access hundreds of reviews and pictures via its app.

Here are the 10 Leeds restaurants that are currently recommended by the Good Food Guide 2023, and what experts had to say about them.

These 10 restaurants are recommended by experts in the Good Food Guide 2023

1. The Leeds restaurants in the Good Food Guide

These 10 restaurants are recommended by experts in the Good Food Guide 2023 Photo: National World

Michael O'Hare's The Man Behind The Curtain, Leeds' only Michelin Star restaurant, is rated 'very good' by the Good Food Guide, scoring 'exceptional' for 'uniqueness' and 'deliciousness'. The expert said: "Michael O'Hare's cooking is full of striking visual dazzlement, its power to astonish beginning before it even hits the palate. Yes, it all costs but, in the context, the lunch taster in particular is good value for the theatrical fun and the memorable taste sensations that come your way."

2. The Man Behind The Curtain

Michael O'Hare's The Man Behind The Curtain, Leeds' only Michelin Star restaurant, is rated 'very good' by the Good Food Guide, scoring 'exceptional' for 'uniqueness' and 'deliciousness'. The expert said: "Michael O'Hare's cooking is full of striking visual dazzlement, its power to astonish beginning before it even hits the palate. Yes, it all costs but, in the context, the lunch taster in particular is good value for the theatrical fun and the memorable taste sensations that come your way." Photo: The Man Behind The Curtain

The Swine That Dines in North Street, run by Stu and Jo Myers, is rated 'very good' in the Good Food Guide. Experts said: "It remains the delightfully simple former café it always was, with Jo front of house and Stu downstairs cooking uncomplicated but very good food. The menu changes regularly but the highlights of a recent visit included a buttery duck liver parfait garnished with broad beans, radishes and grapes, and a dish of fresh crab with hot, crisp polenta fries. "

3. The Swine That Dines

The Swine That Dines in North Street, run by Stu and Jo Myers, is rated 'very good' in the Good Food Guide. Experts said: "It remains the delightfully simple former café it always was, with Jo front of house and Stu downstairs cooking uncomplicated but very good food. The menu changes regularly but the highlights of a recent visit included a buttery duck liver parfait garnished with broad beans, radishes and grapes, and a dish of fresh crab with hot, crisp polenta fries. " Photo: Jonathan Gawthorpe

CORA in Boston Spa, a neighbourhood restaurant and bakery from Liz Cottam, was rated 'good'. Experts said: "Cora is the third in Liz Cottam’s stable of restaurants following on from Home and The Owl in Leeds. This one, in smart Boston Spa, operates as a restaurant and a morning bakery, the counter piled high with bread and pastries to take out or eat in with tea, coffee or perhaps a Mimosa or Bloody Mary. In all, it is a beautifully balanced menu of well-executed dishes, ambitious and sophisticated without being intimidating."

4. CORA

CORA in Boston Spa, a neighbourhood restaurant and bakery from Liz Cottam, was rated 'good'. Experts said: "Cora is the third in Liz Cottam’s stable of restaurants following on from Home and The Owl in Leeds. This one, in smart Boston Spa, operates as a restaurant and a morning bakery, the counter piled high with bread and pastries to take out or eat in with tea, coffee or perhaps a Mimosa or Bloody Mary. In all, it is a beautifully balanced menu of well-executed dishes, ambitious and sophisticated without being intimidating." Photo: CORA

Italian small plate restaurant Stuzzi in the Grand Arcade is rated 'good'. Experts said: "Highlights from the day’s 12-dish menu might include anything from Stuzzi’s famous deep-fried pig’s head terrine with chilli, lemon and 'nduja aïoli to Puglian burrata with roasted artichoke, focaccia croûtons, pistachio and sorrel pesto.Local ingredients also get star billing, be it Harewood Estate venison tartare or chargrilled Yorkshire asparagus wrapped in home-cured chilli lardo with crispy wheat and confit lemon."

5. Stuzzi

Italian small plate restaurant Stuzzi in the Grand Arcade is rated 'good'. Experts said: "Highlights from the day’s 12-dish menu might include anything from Stuzzi’s famous deep-fried pig’s head terrine with chilli, lemon and 'nduja aïoli to Puglian burrata with roasted artichoke, focaccia croûtons, pistachio and sorrel pesto.Local ingredients also get star billing, be it Harewood Estate venison tartare or chargrilled Yorkshire asparagus wrapped in home-cured chilli lardo with crispy wheat and confit lemon." Photo: Jonathan Gawthorpe

Spanish tapas restaurant El Gato Negro in Park Row is rated 'good'. Experts said: " The basics really work; try crystal bread with powerful Picos Blue cheese and honey for jolt and crackle, or damp, crusty sourdough with PX balsamic and good oil for heft. Then it's on to oozy croquetas (with salt cod or jamón ibérico), similarly soft-set tortilla or yielding meatballs in tomato fritarda sauce, plus a cheeky dish of chickpeas and spinach, mined with crunchy pancetta, for health."

6. El Gato Negro

Spanish tapas restaurant El Gato Negro in Park Row is rated 'good'. Experts said: " The basics really work; try crystal bread with powerful Picos Blue cheese and honey for jolt and crackle, or damp, crusty sourdough with PX balsamic and good oil for heft. Then it's on to oozy croquetas (with salt cod or jamón ibérico), similarly soft-set tortilla or yielding meatballs in tomato fritarda sauce, plus a cheeky dish of chickpeas and spinach, mined with crunchy pancetta, for health." Photo: Tony Johnson