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Graham Clark
Music Features Writer
@Maxximum23Clark
8:35 PM 19th August 2019
lifestyle

Giraffe, Trinity Leeds Gets A New Menu

 
I'm not sure who comes up with these names for restaurants- Giraffe sounds like you could be paying a visit to the zoo or does it mean that they are head and shoulders above the competition?

The Giraffe restaurant chain appear to have had a makeover with their menu, gone is the World Kitchen theme, in its place is a more mainstream menu, sure they have kept some of the old favourites such as Chicken Gyoza and Smokey Chorizo for starters and the Bacon and Cheese Smokey Joe burgers from the mains but how about something new like bowls of Beef Bulgogi or Chicken Malay Curry?

The more mainstream items new on the menu are what they call A Proper Plateful of Fish and Chips priced at £11.95 and Meat Feast Flatbread priced at £11.95.

The theme now is "big flavours, positive vibes, happy people". It seems to be working. We visited on an early mid week evening and the restaurant was nearly full. It's a good atmosphere with background music at the right level so you can have a conversation and the service was friendly and very quick. Best of all though was that all the food we were served was piping hot.

Cheesy Garlic flatbread
Cheesy Garlic flatbread
I sampled the Cheesy Garlic Flatbread topped with rocket as a starter. I liked the fact that it was not greasy at all but most of all it was tasty.

Spicy Korean Kimchi burger
Spicy Korean Kimchi burger
From the mains the new addition of the Spicy Korean Kimchi burger - fried chicken fillet tossed in a bulgogi sauce, topped with kimchi and finished with a cayenne ranch dressing was very spicy - I could not taste the chicken only the bulgogi sauce.

My dessert of warm apple crumble was a delight served with vegan vanilla ice cream - it was the perfect partner to the spicy burger.

Apple crumble
Apple crumble
What the majority of diners were discovering is that the Feel Good Set Menu is exceptional value, with 2 courses at £9.95 or 3 courses at £12.95. If you bought any of the items in the menu separately you would pay at least £10.00 more. Good news for any canny Yorkshire man or woman who likes good value for money.

Classic burger - from the set menu
Classic burger - from the set menu
My sister chose the Garlic Flatbread topped with rocket followed by the Classic Burger (good to have a proper burger that actually tastes was the verdict) followed by a very gooey Hot Chocolate Brownie.

If you fancy some Feel Good Summer drinks how about a Blood Orange G&T or a summer cooler priced at £3.95, a mocktail with a combination of sweet strawberry and refreshing cucumber and mint infused with sparkling soda and garnished with fresh orange.

Chocolate brownie
Chocolate brownie
The overall experience was very pleasing - I never saw any plates going back to the kitchen with left over food on them, always a good indication.

Head and shoulders above the competition? Judging by how busy the restaurant was compared to the adjacent restaurants and our own experience, the answer seems to be a definite yes.

Giraffe, Leeds Trinity, 414 Trinity Leeds, Albion Street, Leeds LS1 5AY
www.giraffe.net