When it comes to the best beef restaurants in the city, the steaks are high. Sharpen your knives for the choicest cuts…
Cutting into a juicy steak is one of life’s great pleasures, and there are plenty of places to enjoy that feeling in Leeds. The best steak houses in the city vary from fine dining in luxury surroundings to feel-good family spots where the all-you-can-eat meat never stops coming. Here’s our pick of the best places to go for your steak fix, non-carnivores look away now…
Ox Club
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With a name like ‘Ox Club’, you’d be disappointed if there wasn’t a steak or two to get your chops round at the Headrow House restaurant. You really don’t need to worry. You can watch the chefs prepare your food in the small, open kitchen, with the steaks getting a thorough searing on the solid-fuel grill. Juices get sealed inside, while the magical alchemy of the Maillard reaction delivers a distinctive crust. The bone-in sirloin is all about the savour of well-sourced beef, served with a bold béarnaise and chip sticks. If you’re not dining alone, get the showstopper 800g Highland cote de boeuf to share.
Ox Club, 19a The Headrow, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 6PU.
Restaurant Bar & Grill
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Got a business date you want to impress? Out for a romantic meal? In the mood for dining outside? Housed in the charming Old Post Office building, Restaurant Bar & Grill ticks a lot of boxes. Another of those boxes is called ‘Amazingly Lovely Steaks’, with a selection of native British breeds such as Hereford and grass-fed Black Angus, plus far-flung cuts from Argentina and Australia. The kitchen knows how to cook your meat exactly how you ask for it, whether that’s rump, wagyu sirloin or bone-in prime rib. In the mood for sharing? A 450-gram Chateaubriand with peppercorn sauce is exactly what you need.
Restaurant Bar & Grill, The Old Post Office, 3 City Square, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 2AN.
Fazenda
Fazenda is a fabulous place to feast. The first Brazilian steak restaurant in Leeds has an enviable location next to the canal at Granary Wharf, so you can gaze out at the water while waiters carve all-you-can-eat meat at your table. Yep, it’s a rodizio grill spot, where you’re issued a double-sided card to signal to the ‘passadores’ whether you’re needing a fresh supply of meat or not. Take your pick of picanha (cap of rump), tri-tip (bottom sirloin), alcatra (rump) and, in the evening, melting filet mignon and contra filet. A slew of sides and some sumptuous sauces make this a meeting with meat to remember.
Fazenda Rodizio Bar & Grill, Waterman’s Place, 3 Wharf Approach, Granary Wharf, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 4GL.
The Cut & Craft
The Cut & Craft is a steakhouse with a huge reputation in its hometown of York, but now Leeds has got its very own outpost. There are steaks aplenty to relish here, but the star is their 10oz flat iron steak. Sliced and served to your liking, it’s one of the best steaks in Leeds. If you’re after something even more special, their premium steak cuts are aged for a minimum of 28 days in Himalayan salt to bring out all that meaty flavour. Rib-eye, sirloin, fillet and picanha, as well as daily cuts, good luck deciding. With craft beer and cocktails to boot, all to be enjoyed in a venue full of glitz and glamour, it’s well worth a reservation if you’ve got steak cravings.
The Cut & Craft, 23 King Edward Street, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 6AX.
Crafthouse
As you’d expect from one of the best restaurants in Leeds, Crafthouse takes steaks very, very seriously. They only use dry-aged grass-fed Hereford beef, impeccably-sourced. Grab a terrace seat when the weather is set fair or stay inside – wherever you are the steaks are a dream. The secret is chargrilling them at 300-350 degrees over charcoal on their Josper grill. That quick sear is the key to the savoury crust and succulent centres on rump, ribeye, fillet or the spectacular chateaubriand to share. Pair with your choice of sauce, French fries and vegetables for a meal to truly treasure.
Crafthouse, Level 5, Trinity Leeds, 70 Boar Lane, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 6HW.
Gaucho
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The only Argentinian restaurant in Leeds is a place of pilgrimage for steak lovers. Their beef comes from the cattle ranches of their trusted partners, and unfailingly delivers bold flavours in opulent surroundings. You can choose from a number of grass-fed cuts, with cuadril (rump), ancho (ribeye), chorizo (sirloin) and lomo (fillet) among the most popular. You can try all four with the mountainous Gaucho Sampler or split a chateaubriand for two. Superb sauces include a fiery Firecracker Chimichurri and classic Béarnaise among others, while the deep wine list makes matching with your steak a breeze. Lovers of massive Malbecs will have a field day.
Gaucho, 21-22 Park Row, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 5JF.
Blackhouse Grill on the Square
With ‘Grill’ in the name, steaks are far from an afterthought at Blackhouse. Watch the world go by as you dine inside or on their covered terrace. They give your steak all the TLC it deserves before it finds its way onto a plate. They’re aged for a minimum of 28 days before being air dried for a final 24 hours in their own Himalayan rock salt chamber. Their wide-ranging selection is packed with flavour, from the ribeye to the fillet, but you can push the boat out with their premium 500-gram Chateaubriand fillet for two, complete with a portion of Blackhouse chips, each, haricot beans with shallots and Béarnaise sauce.
Blackhouse Grill On the Square, 31-33 East Parade, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 5PS.
Estabulo
Renowned rodizio joint Estabulo has been at home in The Light for a few years now, tempting ravenous steak-loving diners in with the heady, mouth-watering scent of Brazilian BBQ. For a fixed price you get the run of 10 cuts of meat at lunch service, 17 cuts in the evening, with three and five steak options respectively. That’s not all – you can also help yourself to the superb salad bar and tuck into unlimited sides. For your next slap-up lunch in Leeds, why not stock up on steak with cap of rump, rump or bottom sirloin, while the likes of juicy skirt and beef tenderloin come to the party at night? Go on, you deserve it.
Estabulo, The Light, 22 The Headrow, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 8TL.
Flat Iron
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Well, it’s all in the name isn’t it? Flat Iron is a steakhouse of great acclaim, dominating the carnivore scene in London, and now making waves in Leeds. Get ready for cuts of melt-in-the-middle British wagyu, reared on UK farms including one here in Yorkshire. Their central focus is the signature Flat Iron Steak, seam-butchered from the shoulder and cooked to rosy, tender, juicy perfection for a very friendly £14. There’s Scottish bavette, Flat Iron sirloin and a Leeds-exclusive wagyu of the day to boot, paired perfectly with everything from beef dripping chips to bone marrow garlic mash.
Flat Iron, Flat Iron, 9a Lands Lane, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 6AW.
Miller & Carter
Make a beeline for The Light if you’re ready to take on the 30-day aged British and Irish steaks dished up by Miller & Carter. Introduce yourself to the range with a reliable steak frites as part of the great value set lunch, while children can dine with the grown-ups on a perfectly petite 4oz rump steak from the ‘Younger Guests’ menu. Ready for steak nirvana? There’s a rich range of choices from the prime steak cuts selections, including a surf and turf fillet with lobster. The ‘Master Butcher’s Choice’ is all about flavour-bombs with 50-day aging and stellar sauces including bordelaise and beef dripping.
Miller & Carter, The Light, 56-58 The Headrow, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 8TL.
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