Cattle Grid

I was looking for an alternative restaurant to have lunch on a Sunday, and this was the place I opted for. I guess this place is like a hidden gem? It’s not very obvious as it’s behind the corn exchange, but if you do happen to stumble across, you won’t be disappointed.
It’s a nicely decorated restaurant, simple and nothing too fancy. The menu was simple too, not too cluttered with choice, which I thought made my decision easier. There was the option of Sunday lunch, but I opted for the full rack of ribs and chips.
The portion was a good size and the ribs were covered with sticky sauce, and hand-​cut chips. I took my time to enjoy my food and the flavour, and I really enjoyed myself. The waiters were friendly and helpful. Although it wasn’t that busy on the day, this is a definitely a place to try, and is very competitively priced.
Next time I will go for a juicy steak, and if the standard is as good as the ribs, then I can’t go wrong with a second visit.
People have raved about Red’s barbeque, but if you like meat why not include Cattle Grid in the mix? Go on you know you want to.

Having fallen victim to the increasingly grating ‘despite half the restaurant being completely empty I can somehow arrive at telling you it will be a massive 2 hours before you can eat here’ policy at Reds… which has now pushed me beyond caring about bothering with the place again, we trooped off around the corner where I was sure there was a meaty something I’d walked past before.
There was. It was Cattle Grid and it was ace.
Seated straightaway in lovely spacious surroundings and, by request, next to a fan as it was that weird hot day last week we were immediately happy. The staff seemed a little stretched with just two guys serving but they could not have been more charming and willing to please. Custom service more than making up for a bit of waiting here and there.
Ade had the spicy buffalo wings with stilton sauce for starters and I decided on garlic bread, you know, something light. Ha! It was pretty much a whole loaf and it was delicious! Ade’s wings had a really refreshing hot and piquant sauce that was not cloyingly sweet and managed to leave a really pleasing aftertaste of fresh lemon. The stilton sauce was divine and added great creaminess to both the chicken and my frequently stabbed in chunks of bread. Very nice fare.
For mains Adrian went for a Welsh Rarebit burger which was quirky, well cooked, well seasoned and really worked as a combination of flavours. I went for a half rack of baby ribs and they were soft, yielding and had just the right hint of sweetness– again not over cloying which can get tiresome and sickly with some American style sauces.
We were feeling piggy so went for rocket and parmesan salad, beetroot and goat’s cheese salad, a side order of fries for Ade’s burger (the waiter was right, the burgers are big and Ade did indeed only manage a mouthful of fries after all) and fried onion strings.
The beetroot and goat’s cheese salad stood out as a clear winner on flavour and texture, it cut through the rich ribs and then finished with earthy creaminess in the after taste. I loved the skin on fries but Adrian’s rocket salad had got rather warm in the kitchen and rather sad and wilted. The onion strings split opinion, Ade found them greasy and I found them to be deep fried vegetable heroin.
Sadly the loaf of bread as a starter robbed me of my true food skills and I only managed a mere 3 ribs before I had to throw in the towel. Again the customer service shone through as our waiter not only was happy to bag up my scattered remains but also throw in some extra bones for the dogs. Sir, my dogs indeed thank you.
As we left, stuffed and happy, we mentioned that we had come here because we were fed up with the Reds system… to which our server replied «People think we are rivals but in fact when we are full we send people to Reds and when they are full they send people to us.»
Sadly I think it’s just Cattle Grid who are the gentlemen here. As we stood by the front desk in Reds and said we weren’t happy to wait there was no mention of Cattle Grid around the corner whatsoever… even when I said to Ade «I’m sure there’s another meaty place around here.»
So four solid stars for Cattle Grid, just losing one on a few niggles over hot salads and understaffing… but I fully expect a gold rated 5 stars at my next review.
And…er…just a heads up to the owners, I don’t think Reds are the good friends you think they are.

I’ve passed this place a few times but never really fancied it. As it being a steak house I wouldn’t imagine the menu to be that flattering.
I met friends for lunch on Saturday for a retail therapy ‘pit stop’ she insisted on it so I decided to go with an open mind. The place is nothing special in relation to décor — pretty rustic but bland and nothing special albeit very clean.
The staff here are really friendly although I’m not sure if it was because it was really quiet for a Saturday afternoon but I wasn’t complaining. Maybe a little too keen asking us what we wanted to drink before removing my coat and if we were ready to order before my buttocks had time to warm the seat. Again though I can’t really complain they were really attentive and this is often hard to come by.
The menu was as expected with steak, salads and burgers on offer which does nicely for lunch time options and doesn’t overly complicate things.
My friend and I ordered a salad. A chilli infused beef salad and for me a classic chicken caesar salad I had high expectations at £12. My other friend decided to go all out and order a burger. Ok so the salad — really nothing special to say about the salads I’m afraid. They just did what it said on the tin I’ve had better Caesar salads and the beef salad was as equally bland although the beef looked beautifully cooked. The burger looked ok although for a steak house I would have expected to see one of those burgers that you can’t quite fit in your mouth with rustic chips and a slaw of some kind. The burger itself looked a little scrawny and the ‘fries’ although still with skins for that rustic feel were lacking in portion size. Again my friend suggested that it was nothing special and he had had better.
£16 for a pint and a salad was definitely not worth it’s weight. If your looking for a bit of a bite aand a quiet venue I suppose this is the place for you!

I don’t like doing bad reviews, and this isn’t terrible but it could hhave been a much better experience.
I went for a saturday evening meal out with five friends, No problem finding a table for us and the staff were very pleasant and attentive.
The thing that let it down was the food, I had a steak, asked this time for medium rare, now the thick end of the steak was more medium than rare, but i thought it wasn’t too bad. this was before i realised that the steak was the shape of a wedge, (a fact hidden by the extras i’d ordered.) The thinner end of the wedge was far to well done and although not burnt, wasn’t very nice. I did feel that having already eaten the thicker part of the steak i could really send it back wirth half the meal alreday eaten.
My friends had all opted for burgers, that they had been assured, were very big and more than enough for an adult, well they obviously don’t know my friends or much about adults in Leeds. The burger was ok but i could have eaten two at least, and my friend ended up ordering several side dishes to make up the shortfall.
Shame i didn’t enjoy it more, and i suspect that going on a busy saturday evening may have been their busy time (no problem getting a table though).
With all the competition in Leeds from several well recomended steak and meat houses, i think Cattle grid shouldn’t rest on their laurels.

When my friends asked me where the OH and I were going for our anniversary, I’m pretty sure they had the typical French restaurant or posh Italian eatery in mind. Needless to say I got more than one bemused stare when I told them we were off to the Cattle Grid.
Why, you ask? Well, apart from it being located in one of my favorite parts of Leeds city centre, it’s just really good there. There’s no plainer way of putting it. The food is lovely, the interior design rustic and the staff are friendly without coming off smothering. The music is great here, proper dirty South tunes by the likes of R L Burnside and BB King. Ace.
There are cheaper places in town but sometimes it really is a case of getting what you pay for. With it being a special occasion we both had ribeye steak and chips (I had a side of chilli garlic butter to drizzle onto the steak — mouth’s watering thinking about it!) Juicy, thick sliced and seared to perfection, this beauty put all steaks ive eaten in a long while to shame. Y’know when you slice through meat and it’s so tender that the knife cuts through it like butter? Just gorgeous. I also had a generous serving of home fries and fresh greens, all washed down with a crisp glass of San Miguel.
The bill came to £40.75 for 2 ribeye steak dinners and two pints of s San Miguel– again, I don’t doubt people will balk that this is pricey, because usually I’d be right there with them… but you can’t put a price on a fantastic dining experience, in my opinion. All the elements came together like the crescendo of a rousing tune… so here’s my standing ovation. I love the Cattle Grid!

I’m sure plenty of people have heard of the new Red’s barbecue place near corn exchange and Im even more sure that most people that go get turned away if you are in a big party. Six of us tried to go and as luck would have it they had no place so we went to cattle grid.
With a couple of fab offers the place was big but fullish and so tasty. The full rack of bbq ribs went down a treat and everyone was more then stuffed and happy with their food choices. I would recommend going as your first choice and not the back up place.
9.95 for full rack of ribs and chips or a steak and chips — good deal.

Got a Voucher for radio Aire Love Food, £25 for £50 off the bill as I was so wanting to go here for dinner after the lovely lunch we’ve had previously.
The voucher said to book, so we did, it’s wasn’t necessary however as there was only 1 other couple in the place so we had the choice of anywhere in the restaurant!
I chose a nice corner where I could people watch but have some dignity in tucking into my food!
We had the wings and ribs to start and OMG– no other ribs or wings will ever touch these babies!
The ribs are meaty without being too much and the wings were doused in a sauce which should carry a health warning it’s that hot & spicy– anyway, see the picture I posted– there was nothing but a rib & wing graveyard when I’d finished!
I usually like my steak quite well done so decided the cheaper option of the Rump was for me & the Mr had Rib-​eye.
Dear god, please believe me when I say I’ve never had a nicer steak– EVER!!!
A fab size (10oz), cooked to perfection, just enough chips to accompany and the token piece of garnish with a bit of watercress! (pic also taken!)
My man thoroughly enjoyed the Rib eye which he got rare and could hardly finish it!
With a glass of red wine each there was no room to even consider a dessert!
Our contribution for the bill was a further £7.50 (we had ordered Bearnaise sauce too but wasn’t too impressed with it).
The service was attentive but not pushy and the eclectic mix of background music was to any taste really.
Seriously, this place is an absolute Gem and I hope to go have a steak here at least once a month now.
EVERYONE MUST TRY THIS PLACE!!!

What with all this talk of hog roast delights I knew at the first given opportunity I’d be coming here for lunch. What’s that? £6.95 for a delicious meat sandwich, skin on chips and a drink? Yes please. I demand it, in fact.
So, one lovely and horrendously rainy day last week I did just that. Running in from the rain, a lovely waitress met me at the door and showed me to my table. We knew straight off that we’d be having the sandwiches so my friend and I shared half a beef and half a hog each.
Let me attempt to describe for you the deliciousness that was this king of lunchtime affairs. Delightfully crusty bread baps, nestled within was a plethora of pulled pork, featuring just the right amount of spice. The beef was equally sumptuous, although less seasoned, but it held its own in terms of taste. I do think the pork was my favourite though! The chips certainly deserve a mention, as folk have said before, skin on and cooked to perfection.
Although it was quiet, it’s certainly not to be over looked for a mouth watering and cheap lunch. I’m not sure you’d find such quality and such feasts for so little in many an other restaurant. The rest of the menu looked equally tempting, so I’m sure I’ll revisit for a deeper dig at their offerings.
Meaty feasts and (wo)manly treats await you, oh hungered lunch seeker. Adventure forth and pig out.

So, I finally got chance to head back to Cattle Grid with a view to checking out the Beef Sandwich from the lunchtime menu. Upon arrival I received a real shock — to my utter disdain the price has gone up from £6 to £6.95!
I eventually managed to pull myself together and as a group we decided that, being pay-​day, we would push the boat out and step inside…
The horror didn’t last long — the staff were welcoming as ever and the beef was superb. Stacked high on a grilled bun with salad & fries (skin-​on!). The beef was obviously slow-​cooked it’s own juices over a matter of centuries and had a great flavour to it. I did miss the extra marinade that comes on the pork sandwich — but the flavour in the meat was enough to keep me wanting more (although it’s probably a good thing I resisted as I’m very full this afternoon and rather fancying a nap — a sure-​fire sign of a good feed!).
All in all — I would have to say I personally prefer the pork sandwich, but there really isn’t a lot in it. I’m still awaiting my chance to try something from the main menu — but based on my most recent experience it certainly won’t be a long wait.

I went here the other day after walking past a few times and reading several reviews, and overall it was a good meal.
I wish i could give it 3.5 instead of 4, although 3 feels to harsh as the food was lovely and so too were the waitresses.
We opted for the lunch time special being students and got both their offerings; a slow cooked beef sandwich and a pulled pork sandwich. You get either one of these for around £7 with really good home made chips and a drink, which is pretty good for the amount of food you receive and the sheer quantity.
We split the sandwiches in half and mixed them up so we could try both, the slow cooked beef was my favourite and the garnish in the sandwich was superb, it really complimented the flavours. However, i had never tried pulled pork before and found it not to my liking, although my lass said that it was better than the beef. So it just goes to show horses for courses.
The service was unbelievably quick! The food arrived within in minutes of placing the order which i must admit at first made me worries about the freshness and quality, alas these worries were unfounded.
My major ‘beef’ (excuse the pun) with this place is the lack of atmosphere, it was pouring down with rain so maybe that kept some people away but there was no vibe of any sort, which kinda left me feeling a little flat.
As a side note the building is really well decorated, it just never seems busy enough to remain in business, which is a shame!

For a pretty weedy looking bloke my appetite is immense, especially on a dreary mid-​December Wednesday lunch time where the twin opiates of weekend and pay day seem simultaneously distant in both memory and anticipation. Therefore I sniffed at the £6 lunch deal offering recommended by my work mates at Cattle Grid this afternoon and instead piled straight in to the ribs.
Ribs, even baby-​back ribs, are a pretty cheap cut so I would expect quality, and I think Cattle Grid beats the much pricier River Plate on that front. Decent amount of tasty chips too and overall I think what I got was a good deal for £8.50. In fact, for quality and portion size at that price point I think it spanks Nando’s.
The £6 lunch deal takes the value from good to ludicrous and made a mockery of my protestations of needing something more substantial. Huge burger, chips, drink, boom. Even vegans should check this out just to look at it.
They also do steaks, wings, blah blah check the menu.
The place itself was clean and modern and also has a bar-​type seating area for losers I mean single diners, although the proximity to the door would do my fillet in when it’s 3 degrees outside. Friendly staff, although they lose a star for how long it took to take our order at a time of day when most people are on their lunch break.

I had noticed this place in passing and being a lover of all things beefy I was looking forward to trying it out.
The other person i went with had the lunchtime deal of a beef of pork sandwich with chips and a drink for £6. They aren’t stingy with the portions and it looked delicious.
I had the 10oz sirloin (£14.95) and had some caramelised onions as a topping (at extra cost of £1.50). The steak was cooked just how I asked for and again, the portion wasn’t stingy.
The reasons I’ve marked it down slightly is because the atmosphere was a little strange. The staff seemed quite awkward and there weren’t very many people (could just be opening jitters?)
Overall I think The Cattle Grid is a pretty good place for nice steak and a good lunch deal. Its somewhere I would go again with the hope it might pick up as time goes by.

This place does a fantastic lunch deal. Ive been here twice and tried the hot beef sandwich and the hog roast which cost a grand totoal of 6 pounds with a drink and some pretty tasty chips.
They serve you right away and arent pushy as you walk into the door. The rest of the menu looks fantastic and would like to maybe have a dinner to see how they cook the ribs and the steaks because if their roast sandwiches are anything to go by then Im sure the rest of the menu is just as tasty.