The Potting Shed Guiseley, New Chef Shows Its Not Just Potluck

Sometimes getting a new chef in can make a huge difference to a dining experience.

The Potting Shed has quite a few bars in Yorkshire and you might think that the food served at each one is of the same quality - the menu is standard across them all and in theory what you eat at the Potting Shed in Halifax should taste exactly the same at say the Potting Shed in Guiseley.

The difference though is the chef. From experience chefs tend to sometimes add their own twist to a dish as we are about to discover.

It was an early Saturday evening when we visited, the bar has as the name implies a gardening theme, though you don't have to take off any wellies you might be wearing at the door! Greens and browns prevail throughout giving the place a rustic feel. Within 40 minutes of our arrival the place was practically full though.

The place has a warm atmosphere and I noticed that people tended to stay and not rush off to somewhere else.

The food menu has typical choices such as burgers, pizzas, wraps, open sandwiches, kebabs and some traditional staples such as Fish and chips, Hunters chicken and Sirloin steak.

My partner decided on the Tempura King Prawns as a starter, but unfortunately they had sold out, so a green salad more than sufficed. Fresh and not covered in dressing it tasted as if it had come straight from the garden. My classic Garlic Flat Bread was not overdone with garlic and thankfully was not too greasy either.

The description of the Cajun Chicken Linguini can be misleading though. The menu says that the Cajun Chicken is in a creamy pasta sauce with red and yellow peppers. What actually happens though is that it isn't the chicken that is marinated, it is the pasta that is marinated so that when you eat the pasta you experience a real hot kick back. My partner did enjoy the pasta and it was served piping hot. Perhaps the new chef was trying to put his own identity on the dish?

I had better luck with the Yorkshire Black and Blue burger. The 6oz beef burger was dusted in Cajun spice and topped with Mrs Bells Blue Cheese. As soon as the plate arrived on the table I could smell the meat and blue cheese. A real beefy burger with some serious blue cheese with a strong robust taste. It could be the best £10.95 you have spent. The thick cut chips didn't disappoint either.

The puddings menu only has 4 choices that range from £4.95. My partner's Strawberry Cheesecake was a very sweet sensation with a base I found a little too soggy. My Chocoholic Four Layer Chocolate Fudge Cake came served lukewarm with ice cream on the side. Seriously chocolatey it was an enjoyable end to a good meal.

If you happen to visit Monday to Thursday they have various 2-4-1 offers on Pizzas (Mondays), Vegetarian dishes (Tuesdays), Burgers (Wednesdays) and Kebabs (Thursdays). On Friday they have offers on drinks and live music with a DJ.

If you do happen to be pottering around in Guiseley then The Potting Shed might just make your garden grow. The new chef seems to have planted some solid foundations that deserve to flourish.

The Potting Shed, The Old HSBC Bank, Oxford Road, Guiseley, Leeds LS20 8AA
https://pottingshedbar.com/venues/guiseley