January started with a trip to London where I took the opportunity to indulge in a Kejriwal from Dishoom, one of my favourite breakfast dishes. This month also saw The Ivy on St Helen’s Square open its doors and a fun day helping Brew York put together the newest variant of their Tonkoko Imperial Stout. Mrs Fork showed admirable fortitude for a visit to Whitby to enjoy a stay at The White Horse & Griffin despite her advanced state of pregnancy, even finding space to enjoy a meal at The Star Inn the Harbour. Finally, the Star Inn the City had the chance to show off to the great and good of the food world, hosting the Estrella Damm UK Gastropub Awards which was a very special day.

Dishoom Kejriwal

The Ivy

White Horse & Griffin

Bisque from The Star Inn the Harbour

February was something of a quiet month as we waited for Baby Fork to make her arrival. While her debut was of rather more personal import than that of Humpit Hummus, it was still a pleasure to sample their hummus and falafel. I also finally got the chance to try bread & butter pudding spring roll when Street Cleaver popped up at the Fossgate Social. Millers Fish and Chips in Haxby gave us strength in the days before birth, as did a fabulous Reuben sandwich from Shambles Kitchen.

Shambles Kitchen Reuben

Street Cleaver Bread & Butter pudding spring roll

Baby Fork

March was mainly marked by a lack of sleep, but I still found time to get out and about. Radix started its cutting edge regular tasting menu at 45 Vinyl Cafe. It was a pleasure to be involved with judging the Garbutt & Elliot Food Entrepreneurs Awards so it was particularly rewarding to see the winners crowned at the Hospitium. There’s not much that can prepare you for the first few weeks of parenthood so brunches became something of a refuge. We particularly enjoyed Trinacria (the sausages are superb) and the Brisket Benedict at Source, which was en even more welcome distraction after the loss of one of our beloved cats. The first meal we braved without Baby Fork was to sample the new menu at Goodramgate Ambiente, just as reliably tasty and great value as ever.

Garbutt & Elliot Food Entrepreneur award winners

Radix Hen of the woods, poacher & root vegetable tagliatelle

Source beef brisket benedict

In April Tommy Banks launched his first book, Roots, which later shared its name with his new restaurant in York. I had a stab at his ox cheek recipe and produced a dish that even Tommy complimented me on. A trip out of York to Gio’s Italian Diner uncovered a great value spot that delivered simple food, done well with great ingredients. Our wedding anniversary celebration was less ambitious than previous years but still took in a delicious rosti at Betty’s Northallerton and some beautifully honest pies at Lordstones Cafe. I also finally had the chance to get back to Melton’s for lunch, which was a great opportunity to remember the understated quality these guys bring to Bishy Rd.

Betty’s Rosti

Melton’s celery & gruyere ‘rarebit’

My attempt at Tommy Bank’s Ox cheek from Roots

May brought about the long awaited opening of container park Spark that brought together a well curated selection of the best of local streetfood. While there’s been some turnover amongst the traders involved since then, it remains a welcoming space. With a young baby, we were still struggling to get out for special meals so the chance to visit The Park from Adam Jackson remains a fond memory that Baby Fork was able to share with us. With summer starting, it was lovely to pay a visit to Raithwaite Spa and take the time to relax in the sun, not to mention grab some crab sandwiches from The Cod & Lobster en route. This busy month also saw the launch of Yorkshire Cheddar from Wensleydale Creamery with a menu from Yorkshire legend Steph Moon, a pasta class with the indomitable Sara Danesin, the launch of The Cat’s Pyjamas in York and Malton Food Festival.

Poussin, white onion, ham, hen of the woods from Adam Jackson at The Park

Raithwaite Spa

Spark

As we got to half way through the year, June took me out to the Herbs Unlimited open day and the openings of Shakespeare’s Globe, The Press Kitchen and L’Uva. I also took the chance to check out a fully vegan menu at The Whippet before we popped to Ludlow and enjoyed some small plates with great local produce at CSON’s by the river.

Family Fork at the L’Uva opening

Mussels in the sun at Shakespeare’s Globe

Vegan dishes at The Whippet

By July we were starting to find our feet with Baby Fork a little so managed a few more days out. The hot summer days were perfect for the Yorkshire Sculpture Park and Fountains Abbey. Fantastic meals came from Arras and The Star Inn the Harbour while I finally made it to Everyman Cinema for a Spielburger to celebrate my birthday after a film.

Salmon and Greek Salads at Arras

One of the Follys at Fountains Abbey

Yorkshire Sculpture Park

Spielburger at Everyman

In August I travelled further afield to Leeds to enjoy the launch event for new Pudsey neighbourhood bistro Feed, featuring cheeseburger spring rolls and the “Hangover cone”. I also made it to Bradford to finally visit Prashad, which lived up to sky high expectations despite some enforced needlework, and Stamfords in Pocklington that represented great value. Cooking at home included sampling a recipe box from Riverford and it was a real pleasure to see Born to Lose open in Brew York from the guys behind Street Cleaver.

Whipped Goats Curd with Carrot at Stamfords

Hangover Cone from Feed

Kopra Pethi at Prashad

The big things in September were the York Food & Drink Festival, with whom I was very happy to work and curate the food and drinks trails, and the much anticipated launch of Tommy Banks’ new restaurant on Marygate, Roots. Sunday lunch came from the Principal and Born to Lose, whose Alternative Sunday Lunch was characteristically brilliant. I also made it to Skosh for the first time in too long and for a great value Bento lunch at Sushiwaka. A lowlight of the year came courtesy of a broken plate that necessitated a rather painful and invasive check for tendon damage in my hand and a number of stitches (NB: link to graphic pic), and I was even late for lunch! Thankfully my thumb remains fully functional, if still rather achey.

Born to Lose Alternative Sunday Lunch (2 hours after having my thumb stitched together!)

Lemon & Blueberry Cheesecake at The Principal

Garden pea falafel, pork fat and carrots at Roots launch event

Things quietened down in October a little; fine dining came from Hudson’s in The Grand and a more casual offering from Los Moros, whose opening and success was great to see. A set price lunch from The Rattle Owl was an accessible treat that makes for a great value midweek lunch.

Stone bass, langoustine and Fennel from the Hudsons Tasting Menu

Small plates for lunch at The Rattle Owl

Los Moros Tagine

November took us back to Roots for a final treat before Mrs Fork went back to work. I visited Leeds again to check out Dough, the new city centre offering from the guys behind Feed, and the Assembly Food Hall that packed a cracking burger from Slap & Pickle. The lunchtime pie menu from The Whippet hit the spot and I had great fun running a blogger event with the lovely Avocado Events and the Star Inn the City, to whom I wish a quick recovery to after their recent fire.

Slap & Pickle burger at Assembly Underground

Introducing the Children’s menu at the Star Inn the City

As we moved toward the end of the year, December took me to The Cutlery Works in Sheffield, a great addition to Kelham Island, which featured some great sashimi and poutine. The Christmas decorations at Castle Howard were good enough to encourage us to make it a habitual visit with Baby Fork in coming years and I finally got to see the stage show of Jeff Wayne’s War of the Worlds that even exceeded my expectations.

Castle Howard

Martian fighting machine with War of the Worlds!

Sashimi and small plates at Cutlery Works

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Lunchtime is precious in the world of office work. It’s an opportunity to stamp your authority on a small element of the days you spend earning a living in return for a precious slice of that remuneration. While you may or may not be lucky enough to have a subsidised work canteen (and “lucky” is very much subjective in this context given the variable quality of these institutions) it’s often beneficial to get some distance from the desk and eat out, potentially under a euphemistic “working lunch”. The Whippet is the latest restaurant in town to recognise the possibilities of this market and offer an appropriately priced menu of Whippet Inn Pies that can be enjoyed in a suitably brief timeframe.

The Whippet are now offering a pie menu for lunch that can be pre-ordered for maximum efficiency and offers a satisfyingly hearty lunch for under a tenner. The pies on offer here are proudly described as “proper pies, none of this tin with a pastry lid!” and are indeed fully encased in pastry with the, justifiable, exception of the fish pie. There are five fillings on offer, including a vegetarian pie alongside that fish offering, and seven sides to go at before a couple of dessert options to finish the menu. Pricing is certainly keen with pies all weighing in under £6 and sides only £2.50; decide you’d like a dessert too and it’ll only need another £2.25.

I was just about able to stretch my appetite to try all of the Whippet Inn Pies on offer, enjoying them all without finding a clear winner. On balance my favourite was probably the most traditional filling of braised beef that came further alive with a touch of blue cheese. The smoked fish pie showed pleasant restraint and didn’t allow strong smoky flavours to dominate, while the balance of chorizo and chicken was happy to play amongst itself with peppers. Mac and cheese filled pie disappointed a little, needing a stronger flavour to allow the slow cooked brisket to make a proper showing, but cheese, beef and pastry can only ever be the slightest disappointment when on the same plate. I’ve tried vegan options at the Whippet before so it was thankfully predictable to find the vegetarian pie just as satisfying as the meat-based options with subtle satay sauce bringing the best out of cauliflower, chickpea and aubergine.

After trying the full range of pies, I felt it still my duty to check out at least one of the desserts, so worked happily through a few mouthfuls of sticky toffee pudding. The toffee sauce this came with was a felt like a suitable indulgence with which to finish the meal and the sticky toffee pudding that it drenched was happily light enough to not send one to sleep upon returning to the desk. Some years ago I had a desk very close to The Whippet and would regularly lose depressing amounts of money on very average sandwiches. Had the option existed to indulge myself like this for only a few more pounds, I’d have definitely done so.

Disclaimer: No charge was made for this meal. Opinions are impartial

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I’ve had a few people suggest popping along to Gio’s Italian Diner and it’s on a regular route I travel, so I’ve been noting it’s progress for some time. During this period it’s formed itself into something of a landmark on the Hull Road, making the most of its modest surroundings that, perhaps unpromisingly, features a hand car wash. The actual restaurant is based in a repurposed shipping container that feels anything but as utilitarian as that might suggest. Diners were welcomed by the friendly owner behind his strikingly large machine for producing thin dough. Around the same time as I got there, another party arrived with a couple of kids who were quickly issued with chunks of dough for them to form into whatever shapes they saw fit ready to bake and take home; a really nice touch that set the friendly and informal tone.

The one thing that Gio’s Italian Diner has chosen to specialise in is Calzone, which unsurprisingly dominates the menu. A four inch calzone will set you back up to six pounds while doubling the size means you’ll have to dig out up to another three quid. Alternatively a set menu including antipasti, a four inch calzone and some ice cream will run up a bill of £11.95 a person.

We made ourselves comfortable at a corner table while we ordered and settled Baby Fork into a space and got stuck into the antipasti and a few slices of cheesy garlic bread. It’s worth reinforcing at this point that this is very much street food style, so if you’re put off by cardboard trays and disposable (biodegradable) cutlery then maybe give this one a miss. I’ll happily eat anywhere the food measures up and what’s on offer here is certainly worth a detour. The antipasti we started with was a simple selection of marinated veg including mushroom, cauliflower, sweet potato and olives along with a few slices of chorizo and that cheesy garlic bread. Everything we ate was simple enough stuff but judged well and balanced nicely, a theme that was to continue.

Our party of three had all gone for the four inch option, variously selecting the pepperoni, cheese and ham and a special of a wagyu beef brisket with bbq sauce, garnished with some sharp pickled veg. We may have all been eating variations on the same dish, but nobody was disappointed. The Gio’s calzone is the epitome of a well-delivered dish from a chef that has focussed on making one thing as good as he’s able to. In my experience, calzone has always been a doughy, weighty disappointment focussed on size rather than quality but the surprisingly light parcels we enjoyed were a world away from that stereotype. In particular, the beef in mine was delightfully tender and sat happily in the taste of barbecue sauce it needed to make the dish while the pickled veg didn’t outstay their welcome. When relying on doing one dish well, every element needs to hit its mark perfectly and the final remaining element of the dough reached the same heights. Thankfully it was beautifully light and didn’t descend into starchy lumps as can be the case, it (both figuratively and literally) wrapped up a delightful course for us all.

To finish, we shared a series of ice cream scoops featuring a range of flavours including a delicious creme caramel that I’m afraid I may have dominated. By this point Baby Fork was due a change which in doing so exposed a weakness as I didn’t find a suitable baby changing area. Thankfully the nice weather made the back seat of the car an easy substitute.

Gio’s is a friendly, welcoming and characterful spot that achieves its goals admirably in delivering a superb signature dish at a great price without compromising on quality. With a reputation spreading rapidly, it’s worth planning a visit in the near future to check it out for yourself.

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I didn’t fancy dining alone given the likely portion size from this sort of dining experience, so quickly grabbed a friend who was finishing work in Leeds at about the right time and made tracks with them to settle in for feeding. The bar was as spotless as one might expect a venue only a few weeks into its life to be and the friendly front of house guys quickly had us seated in a booth to one side of the main bar area with menus in hand.

We grabbed some onion rings to pick at while waiting for mains of the beef rib and a smokin’ platter that featured smoked wings, tortillas, crab taquito, beef empanadas and breaded shrimp with mango puree and sweet chilli to dip everything in. Before the server left, we exhibited no restraint at all by also ordering some grilled corn to have on the side. The onion rings arrived almost instantly along with a couple of beers from the broad selection on offer and it was very satisfying to dredge the crisp batter through some mayonnaise which didn’t leave one’s hands unpleasantly greasy.

Our chosen meats arrived after a similarly brief pause, unfussily presented on a mixture of plates and slates. We worked through a few bits from the sharing platter first, enjoying the chicken wings and breaded shrimp with the mango puree. The tortilla bites let out a pleasing crunch while the beef empanadas and crab taquitos were less successful, not letting the main ingredients reach full potential, the crab in particular struggling to fight its way past the sweetcorn it shared space with. The beef rib, scattered with sliced chilli, had been well cooked and didn’t require too much effort to separate into bite sized chunks that packed in plenty of the promised smokiness. Having been lucky enough to enjoy some really special beef rib in my time this was always going to suffer a little by comparison, but there’s little to be disappointed in here for £12.95 in a buzzing bar centrally located in Leeds. Corn on the cob came with a very well judged hint of char and was a welcome note of sweetness at the side of the meal.

As seems to be inevitable when eating anywhere that trades on the promise of good smoked meats, we exited with a good amount of leftovers ready to see my friend and his partner through a hearty lunch the following day. It’s not unfair to say that Smokin’ Bar isn’t the kind of dining experience I go out of my way to enjoy, but that’s not to say it fails to hit its mark. I was impressed by the service, sensibly priced and broad drinks list and lively atmosphere. For a beer each and all that food, we’d have seen a little bit of change from fifty quid, which seems like a fair deal for dinner for two in the centre of Leeds. Smokin’ Bar Leeds is set to be a buzzing place to hit for after work or weekend drinks.

Disclaimer: This is an impartial review of a complimentary meal.

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Before we headed for dinner on the day after the GBM meal, we went exploring and came across a couple of places worth checking out. Just around the corner from Ouseburn Urban Farm, you can find the Ship Inn, whose kitchen was knocking out some spectacular looking vegan food that it was a struggle not to order. One of the locals even wrote us a poem – you can’t fault the welcome here! The other recommendation we followed up was the Broad Chare where we took on a couple of snacks that suggested a return visit would be superb; deep fried monkfish cheeks being just as fantastic as they sound.

By the time we finished exploring, it was definitely time for tacos on the beach so we took a seat and a couple of menu cards in the shipping container that houses Barrio Comida. The menu here is heavily focused on tacos, with an almost obsessive approach to sourcing the best ingredients with which to fill them. There’s a sense of simplicity running through everything here, from the predominantly natural cooking fuels to the ordering cards you mark yourself and the plastic cups your wine is served in. This approach proved a perfect contrast to the previous evening’s extravagance as we relaxed into the view and ambience.

The six tacos and one tostada we ordered arrived as quickly as the kitchen could get them out, probably a touch more quickly than necessary given it was relatively quiet that evening. They were, without exception, absolutely superb. The care that goes into the sourcing paying off through every bite of each taco. Our appetite stretching to almost the entire list with only grilled ox tongue standing in our way of a full house, in retrospect £3 extra to make that claim seems like it would have been a sensible investment.

Each filling was an exercise in great judgement of flavour, quantity and heat. The standouts included fried prawn that was served with a grilled prawn head to pour over, baby potatoes in adobo with queso fresco and braised ox cheek. The octopus tostada we ordered held its head equally high, spiking capers into each mouthful alongside the fresh seafood.

The scarcely believable cost of all this when a couple of glasses of wine were thrown in and a tip added came to a shade over £40. The GBM meal at House of Tides may have been the epitome of a wonderfully memorable event meal, but this was an object lesson in how to deliver fantastic, fresh food at an incredible price.

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After a period of closure and the finding of a new tenant, the Minster Inn has been subjected to a sympathetic renovation that, thankfully, hasn’t ruined the character of the interior rooms and bar, but has introduced luxuries such as indoor toilets. Part of the refurbishment has sacrificed one of the small rooms in favour of a kitchen that now offers pizza and tapas. While I’ve not got around to following up that visit and proving myself right to the friend in question, I did have the chance to pop back with another couple of lovely people to see if the food was up to snuff.

While now offering food, the Minster Inn still works just fine as a pub. The front bar still houses friendly locals and the real ale is both varied and well kept. Back in my early days in York, this is somewhere I bumped into a chap who lived a few doors from me a couple of years previously…in Cambridge. It doesn’t feel any less friendly now.

When we got to ordering food, we chose three tapas dishes and a pizza to share. The prawn and chorizo pizza, marinated anchovies, stuffed peppers and garlic mushrooms weighed in at £24 with a couple of drinks. Very reasonable recompense for dinner for two and a beer each. There was a bit of a wait on food, but fair warning was given from the friendly servers.

When the food punctuated our conversation, the pizza presented well with generous toppings and thin crust. The tapas varied in promise from nicely presented mushrooms on toast to a modest portion of anchovy. Of the three tapas dishes, the mushrooms stood out, presented on fried bread and with a balsamic dressing. The mushrooms were richly dressed and contrasted well with the crisped bread. Stuffed peppers were less successful, throwing out a unexpected amount of heat that threw the whole table. They were by no means a terrible thing to eat, but didn’t deliver what any of us expected. The anchovies were salty and satisfying to go with a drink. It’s fair to say that none of this stuff is fine dining, but as a well priced way to supplement drinks with friends on a casual night out, this really hits the spot. It’d be remiss of me not to mention that the pizza had an unexpected bit of topping in the form of a shard of plastic, but no harm done and the server looked mortified beyond words when informed, quickly returning with complimentary beer to make up for it. If it wasn’t on the wrong side of town for me, I’d be back a lot more often!

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Having never patronised the furniture shop that used to inhabit this space, I’m not sure how it was laid out before, but the large space benefits from a balcony and prominent chandelier to prevent it feeling too cavernous, the guys are justifiably proud of that striking chandelier and the Cosy Club York space feels welcoming and interesting without being too cluttered.

There’s a wide variety of food on offer including traditional main courses, burgers, sandwiches and tapas alongside a tempting sounding brunch offering. The tapas we were served on the opening night included hummus with pomegranate, patatas bravas, mushrooms with tarragon and some chicken wings, which were the highlight. The wine list starts with glasses from under a fiver while there’re offers available on a wide variety of cocktails if you’re of that persuasion.

I’ll have to get back for a proper go at the food, but the early signs are that Cosy Club York is a nice addition to Fossgate that’ll cater well for a wide variety of occasions.

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Just off Rossio you can find Figus, a trendy bar and restaurant that offers outdoor seating with views of the square on which it’s located. We had delicious monkfish with rice and tomato sauce, and battered salt cod neatly presented with rice, black olives and salad. It’d be easy to overcharge and be lazy in this location, but the food was good and prices very reasonable.

Time Out Market has built a strong following and far reaching reputation in the last few years since its opening. We spent a significant amount of time there and particularly enjoyed some fantastic pork cheeks with lardons, shredded cabbage and mash from Henrique Sa Pessoa, and Asian-influenced beef tartare from Tartaria. Sea Me did some noteworthy squid in cuttlefish ink tempura too. If this place was in York, I’d move in immediately.

After a warm afternoon exploring the castle, we followed up on another recommendation and found outselves admiring the view from Portas do Sol, which has a stunning terrace giving wonderful views. The pintxos were a bit unexciting – sun-dried tomato, mozzarella and cured meat not being a challenging combo – but the salt cod and chick pea salad came much closer to the mark. Neither dish could be called a disappointment though in this environment.

After a short train journey, we made it to the legendary Pasteis de Belem (essential when visiting Lisbon) to get our hands on some delicious locally baked custard tarts. We’d been lucky enough to get a tip from a seasoned traveller, so casually strolled past the massive queue (this place knocks out over 15,000 tarts a day) to take a seat inside for table service. The tarts were predictably fantastic, though, it must be said, not life-changingly improved from those available back at Time Out.

The final highlight came from Bonjardim Chicken. This place doesn’t make any fuss; it just gets on with serving shed loads of rotisserie chicken and spicy peri peri sauce for you to brush on yourself. A whole chicken, fries and a drink each came in at under thirty Euro for two and was the epitome of a single dish honed to perfection. Just don’t assume the bread rolls are complimentary – you’ll be charged if you tuck in.

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On our last visit, we commented that our server had phenomenal powers of recall as she related the specials of the day in forensic detail. Clearly there’s something in the water as this trick was repeated with great precision when we were seated. Hopefully the server wasn’t too deflated that those efforts were in vain as we put aside the main menu and concentrated our appetites on the shorter set menu and wondered if we would push through two or three courses.

To start with we picked off Truffle Tagliatelle and Silky Pate Bruschetta while enjoying a glass of Montepulciano. The very tempting headline price of just under twelve quid for two courses didn’t reveal any obvious compromises so we relaxed into the lunch and found the starters appear in very short order.

With generous shavings of truffle, the pasta dish didn’t scrimp on costly ingredients and it was obvious the pasta was rich and recently made. I had been concerned that a pasta starter would compromise my appetite for a main course, but this was unfounded, though the pasta would have benefited from a little more oil to loosen it. The chicken liver pate topping the bruschetta was silky smooth and light, shot through nicely with crispy pancetta and sprinkled with fresh parmesan. The meal was as smooth as that pate so far!

Main courses hit the table quickly enough in the form of Gennaro’s Chicken Club and Italian Steak & Fries along with extra chips to bulk out the Chicken Club. That indulgence and the steak supplement added just under a fiver to the headline price. The skirt steak was well trimmed and seasoned, if cooked beyond my preference (though my preference is as raw as the cut will allow), and sat next to a generous portion of fries. Garlic butter seasoning didn’t overface the rest of the dish while the excess slaw sat contentedly enough on the side of the plate. Chicken Club pitched up on a board with a Jamie’s flag holding it together and a slightly eccentric whole jalapeño broadside across the breast. The chicken had a good char and remained moist at the core, though could have done with a touch more crisping on the skin.

Between us we only had space for one dessert, so a Tiramisu Pavlova duly arrived. The dish comprised a chocolate ice cream and a good sized meringue that gave the coffee flavour needed to earn the dish’s title. Grace pronounced it thoroughly satisfying and a suitable way to end the meal that would be worthy of a repeat order on a subsequent visit.

Jamie’s Italian made a contribution to the cost of our meal, but accounting for that the damage was less than fifty pounds for the two of us; very reasonable for a decent extended mid-week lunch at Jamie’s Italian. You can check out the menu here https://www.jamieoliver.com/italian/restaurants/york/superlunch/

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The range of cuisines on offer really is very wide, taking in Indian, Italian, Sushi, Carvery, Teppanyaki and Asian alongside various deli style options and desserts. It seems that the real challenge in running a restaurant of this style is to keep the quality of all those options at an acceptable standard and the quantities available topped up. After a pleasant explanation from our server of practicalities such as where to collect fresh plates and so on we took our table before making our first trip to fill our plates.

Starting at the Asian counter, I grabbed a modest selection of prawn tempura, duck pancake and a steamed bun with an eye on maintaining enough appetite to sample as much as possible. Perhaps the signing was a little off, but I immediately committed an error in picking up a custard steamed bun, introducing a nice note of dissonance by starting with a dessert item. Still, everything was nicely prepared even if I was eating it in the wrong order. Sticking on the same side of the globe, I next approached the teppanyaki bar to request scallops and calamari be freshly prepared for me. The queue for the teppanyaki grill was entirely justified by the fresh preparation and the resulting seafood. The only hiccup here was in selecting a sauce from the illegible signing.

The next few plates came and went with various selections of pizza, pasta, ribs, shredded pork, stir fry and curry all joined by their regional sidekicks while we revealed a distinct lack of artistry in our plating skills that you can see in the pictures below.

After working our way through the wide variety of savouries, omitting carvery and noodle bar for the sake of both waistline and sanity, we moved on to looking at desserts. Guess what? There was a large range on offer! I can tell you’re shocked. With not much space left, I ignored the Eton Mess, eclairs, brownies and jelly to just opt for a shot glass of chocolate. Grace however, being more game than me, helped herself to ice cream, fruit and sweets alongside marshmallows showered in chocolate. Before lapsing into sugary unconsciousness, she made positive noises about it all.

It’s both true and slightly churlish to point out that all of the styles on offer here can be found produced to a higher standard in other places around York, with the possible exception of teppanyaki, but there’s no denying the value on offer here. Kids were sliding about the place on heelies, indulging in whatever obscure combination took their fancy before taking advantage of the chocolate fountain, while grown ups were able to stick to rather more traditional combinations and order from the sensibly priced drinks menu. With the most expensive dinner option coming in at £17 per adult, it’s hard to argue with the value and we certainly enjoyed our meal and the decision making that went along with it!

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