Pickles & Potter

New phone has finally arrived and attempting to christen the camera with its first blog post. I went back to Leeds to see the family and decided to review mine and mama Lo’s fave sandwich joint.
Currently writing this on my coach back to London, with some strange man playing cross armed elbow tennis with me in his sleep. Suddenly that 80 quid train seems like a bargain…
So this Pickles and Potter place is a lovely little deli café back in Leeds which my mum introduced me to a few years back, and i’ve been a huge fan of their ‘award-​winning; sandwich ever since. URGH — Award-​winning: I’m a sucker for those words. My immediate reaction when used in reference to food? COME AT ME NOW.
Where? Pickles and Potter Deli Café, Queens Arcade, Leeds
What? Award-​winning Beef Favourite Sandwich — Choice of bread with rare roast beef, mayonnaise, horseradish, mustard, red onion marmalade, choice of cheese (I went for brie), tomatoes, rocket salad. Eat in — £4.95 Out — £3.90
Yays — This is without a doubt my favourite sandwich place in Leeds. The home roast beef is perfectly cooked and pink just how i like it, on a bed of crunchy fresh salad with the occasional ‘pop’ from the mustard seeds. Rare beef and wholegrain mustard — possibly my favourite food combo ever? That’s a lie anything deep fried and doused in maple syrup might just top that.
There’s a selection of cheese you can chose from, i’ve ALWAYS had mine with brie so i thought i’d be adventurous for once and asked for the guy’s recommendations (he suggested Stilton). Shamelessly ignored him and requested brie anyway. Thought i’d return some sandwich power to him and went with his choice of white bread… god aren’t I such a babe.
Love that all the produce is sourced locally from the best suppliers.
Bread — French Baker Thierry Dumouchel
Cheese — Cryer & Stott
Onion Marmalade — Elizabeth Smedley
Nays — The caramelised red onion marmalade is definitely what makes this sandwich. A tasty sweet sticky marmalade though a bit too sweet for my liking. I would have much preferred a CHUTERNAY (cheeky Schmidt reference for you New Girl fans). My mum and sister went for the soup which had a lovely thick consistency but lacked heavily on the seasoning front, just call me Greg Wallace.
⁹⁄₁₀
If you’re ever around in the Leeds area a try of their famous beef sandwich is highly recommended. Not hard to see why it won awards!
More reviews of cheap eats and street food by Chikay Lo at

Unfortunately apart from the baked goods that look delicious (have not sampled any) my tuna and pesto sandwich on whole grain was a tasteless disgusting concoction I couldn’t get over how watery and horrible the tuna was.
As for my mug of tea another disappointment it tasted very cheap and bland the price did not fit the lack of quality.
I paid over £7 for this poor excuse for food and drink and was thoroughly annoyed will not bother going in again no matter how tasty the baked goods look.
There are plenty of better establishments in Leeds probably better value for money too.

I simply adore the sandwiches there. I know it’s just bread and meat but sometimes I’m dying for their Piri-​Piri Chicken Favourite. I will never get tired of it and that makes me lifelong client of Pickles & Potter. I’m going to try also their catering service soon.

I’ve been here a few times over the years and once or twice to the one in Headingley that I guess is now defunct. To be honest I’m not a big sarnie fan unless its big, fat and unhealthy! The ones here are quite tasty! If you like your bread you’ll probably love this place. The cakes are nice, but again I don’t think they amazed me like a couple of other places.
The lowly seeming 3 stars is because I’d never come here for a coffee and the cakes are mediocre for the price. A sandwich is £4.95 to eat in which is quite a heft. I spent £7.25 for the sandwich and small bottled drink. I could have a very decent full meal of maybe lesser quality but without being hemmed into the small and very busy place. The one in Headingley did seem to have a cleaner and less mad atmosphere the times I went.

Ugh. Lovely rare beef sandwich with brie and a bunch of junk I can’t remember, but anywhere small with a «order before sitting down» policy the staff do nothing to enforce is too much of a headache on a chilled Sunday. When you consider opting to «eat in» actually increases the prices by ~25%, finding out my seat has been taken by the girlfriend/​kids/​shopping of some douche who was behind me in the queue may cause a minor flip out.

Arriving in a city you’ve never been to is always a bit daunting. My ma and I were on a jolly and, as we couldn’t check in to our hotel, we thought we’d pop out for some food and renew our energy before hitting the shops later on. Pickles & Potter is an unassuming deli down one of the many arcades and alleyways of Leeds, some of which have quickly become my favourite place there as they contain the small places, the independent places which actually want your custom.
I am a bit of a fussy duck when it comes to lunchtime as I despise mayo and everything it stands for so sandwiches can become a bit of a pain. Luckily, we quickly cottoned on to the fact that you basically build your own sandwich; there are pre-​built choices in the fridge but really you can have free reign. We ordered and tucked ourselves away in the corner of the seating area and were quickly presented with our choices, served with an absolutely divine pile of carrots dressed with poppy seeds — it’s always so nice to have something unusual! My sarnie was beef and smoked cheddar (again, you even get to choose which cheese you want, so it’s totally up to you, no need to pick anything out!) topped with onion chutney and it was delicious. Everything was well balanced and the perfect size, just enough that you felt full and ready for your afternoon but not so much that you just want to sit and do nothing.
The cakes looked lovely and ma was presented with a small piece of brownie upon ordering a coffee, a great touch to encourage you to buy some! We managed to resist but P&P is definitely somewhere I will keep in mind if ever I end up back in Leeds and in need of a mayo free hideaway!

Today I nipped into pickles and potter luckily there was only 1 person in front of me… win!!! 20 seconds later and my decision made and the queue was once again brimming out of the door… haha bad timing suckers! I have been frequenting this Leeds treat for a long time and ever a fan of a tasty little indie café, not surprisingly I again was not disappointed! Today I had the warm sandwich special which was gammon and some spiced onions, NOM!
To be honest my only problem has only ever been how busy it gets, god damn those tasty treats, but that’s the price we pay for such a cool place, a perfect venue to take a veggie, a vegan or your nan!
They serve real food, which can be hard to find in the city when looking for somewhere to luncheon… I usually opt for a tasty sandwich but have been known to get involved with a tasty salad which always seems to have lots of variety,
Best idea, is to try and avoid peak times, or just take your chance! And if you’ve been good treat yourself to a brownie!
Do it!

i found this little deli in leeds while wandering aimlessly for a decent lunch i walked past twice, and came back, hmm i looked in the window and saw such a great counter full of great fresh looking food and thought i cant resist anymore, i went in and i ordered the award winning beef sandwich, and watched it being made by great friendly staff. and nom nom ! it was fab i love this place is exactly what is says it is !! decent honest food on the high street, and my passion also is that its local produce too.
well done pickles & potter, i love it !!

So, after a long night I headed out and met a friend here for breakfast here the other week, granted it was closing in to lunch time, but we said we’d have breakfast so that’s what we had. And what a choice of food to have! They offer a fantastic array of breakfast items, and being an indecisive sort, I couldn’t help but go for two different choices. Greedy? Maybe. Happy? Definitely.
I started with their home made granola, topped with yoghurt and honey, and it was divine. The yoghurt was pretty tart, but it matched the crunchy granola and delicious sweet honey perfectly. Plus, the bowl was gargantuan. I then followed with the traditional English breakfast and that did not disappoint. Yummy eggs, big sausages, bacon, delicious mushrooms and all the trimmings. The home made baked beans were a particular treat! Although the plate was slightly more than you’d pay at a greasy spoon, the quality and ambiance completely made up for that. And in all honesty, even sans granola, there was plenty to eat on that plate!
My love for this beautiful café continues to grow. I just wish the town centre branch had wifi, so that I could laze all day, smothered in their delicious brownies on an endless coffee drip. Now that’s an image you might want to erase…

I like the name Pickles & Potter, I really, truly do. It sounds delicious when you say it: «Ohhh, let’s go to Pickles & Potter,» like «let’s go have a romp in a field of delicious…» only with fun tongue tingling alliteration.
But for the life of me, I just can’t figure out what it means. Does the potter grow pickles? Is Pickles the name of a beloved pet and Potter the surname of some cute auntie living alone — Charlotte Bronte style — in the Yorkshire Dales? Are they potting pickles? Ahhh… so many questions!
From my experience today, I’ve found that Pickles & Potter tangibly taste-​translates to superb full English brekkies, strong Americanos and fabulous tangy yogurt with granola. It means spoonfuls of brownies with your coffee, homemade soups and breads, and personal touches like cosy couches and hand written chalkboard menus. Friendly service is a given as are fresh ingredients and mouthwatering take-​away treats for the road. It means ‘come and escape the mental arcade with its cold chrome and marble in our veritable back-​country cabin with warm shabby-​chic style.’
I’m still not sure what the name Pickles & Potter actually means, but I’m pretty sure I’ll like my definition better!

I went to Pickles & Potter for lunch today and the food was delicious (as always)! I had the roast beef sandwich, my partner had the ham sandwich and our friends both had jacket potatoes. We all loved our food! The only slight annoyance was that there were only 3 girls working and when we arrived (at about midday), we had to wait for about 15 minutes for them to take our order due to quite a long queue.

Pickles & Potter regularly provides me with an oasis of calm amongst the sometimes fraught, bustling atmosphere of the city centre. Located in the stunning Queen’s Arcade, the décor of the deli and café is beguilingly rustic, whilst hinting at its contemporary astuteness.
The chef who runs the place takes huge pride in sourcing all of the ingredients used from local farmers markets, and the results are simply magnificent. The soups on offer are consistently packed with flavour, hailing from The Yorkshire Soup Company; the pies vary in filling choice, but are always a substantial lunch time treat. The sandwiches are made using delicious and freshly baked bread from the nearby Dumouchel bakery; they are much coveted having won local awards. My personal favourite is the rosemary and mint infused roast lamb. The meat is mouthwateringly tender, it is evident that lashings of love were administered when cooking it. The garlic infused roasted rare beef sandwich is also sublime, jostling for attention amongst the rest.
Mounds of cakes, flapjacks, brownies and tiffin regularly tempt my wallet into action to satisfy a craving. I have always been delighted with the quality on offer, the lemon drizzle cake is especially scrumptious. The daily hot specials are delicious. I sampled a devil on horseback casserole with roasted potatoes just before Christmas, which was as tasty as it was innovative. There is something devilishly entertaining about enjoying a relaxing snack, whilst watching frantic Christmas shoppers panic. On my way out, I purchased some local chutneys and jams which made fantastic festive stocking fillers.
A journalist from the Guardian visited Leeds recently under the premise that he would hand himself over to the opinions of the public. Via the medium of Twitter, he was guided around the city visiting the best of the best. Naturally, a deluge of tweets directed him to Pickles & Potter for a lunch time feast and another satisfied customer was created.
Pickles & Potter go to great lengths to ensure that local ingredients and suppliers are patronised in the creation of their food. This passion for regional sourcing is commendable and I feel proud to flaunt the place to visiting relatives and friends.

the best lunch in town.. . i so miss working, being on maternity stops me getting my weekly p&p fix, sob
beef special on foccacia with brie mmmm and dont forget the best brownie EVER!
Worth every penny and fab staff, love you !

Pickles and Potters is one of those places that you will visit and wonder why ever you didn’t think to pop in before.
Hundreds of fresh deli ingredients, cheeses, salads, breads and light meals make up the sprawling counters. Imagine Pooky & Grumps in Horsforth but with more sandwich choices.
It’s a nice place to pick up a sandwich and coffee whilst shopping on a busy day. Beware, you may have to stand and wait a while as the the queues do get pretty huge.
I visit here every time my parents come to Leeds to see me, and I’m never disappointed!

With its shabby-​chic interior, piles of tempting cakes and mature clientele, Pickles and Potter looks like it would be more at home in a rural village than in an upmarket arcade in central Leeds. It certainly does a better trade in this location though, with queues often stretching out of the door. Once you get inside, you will find an array of tempting sandwiches, salads, meats and cheeses to take away, plus a choice of handmade, mouthwatering cakes. If you’re lucky enough to get one of the few tables in the cosy room next door, you won’t want to give it up in a hurry. Despite jostling for elbow room with other diners and looking out on the steady stream of harassed shoppers pouring down Queens Arcade, you’ll find it hard not to relax in the cheerful décor, lulled into a contented daze by soothing décor, smiling staff and a stomach full of fresh, hearty food.

Went for an early lunch with my son one day. What an amazing place, I am totally hooked, spinach salad, beetroot salad, cous cous, all fresh and delicious. The fudge brownie is to die for ! Wish we had a place like this in Bingley where I work. Only draw back is the smallness of the place so get in early, we arrived at 11 30am and the place was near empty but as we left it began to fill up and people were queing for sandwiches, etc.
What a find, thanks Paul for introducing me to this place.

I love this place, it does the best sandwiches ever. A really sweet little sandwich shop/​deli it does a whole range of lovely sandwiches with about 4 or 5 specials. The rare roast beef is delicious as is the ham. The cakes are lovely as is everything else I’ve tried. Pickles and Potters seems to be quite popular so I’m surprised there’s no reviews already. Lunchtimes always seem to have a queue out of the door.
Every sunday they do a roast dinner, we went for the roast beef and yorkshire pudding and the plate was piled high with really well cooked, delicious food. We thought at first it was slightly pricey at just under £10 per head, however, after a rather lengthy wait, it was definately worth it!

Wonderful organic café in the heart of Leeds’ busy shopping district. Nestled up a side street in the middle of County Arcade, this place definitely has the best sarnies in Leeds. Fresh being the order of the day, they do a Roast Beef and Brie sandwich to die for, the most delightful brownie this side of Huddersfield, and some wonderfully inventive beetroot and goat’s cheese pies.
If you fancy sitting in, it’s small but well formed, and the chunky wooden furniture is perfect for the feel of the place. With helpful, friendly staff and reasonable prices that make prêt feel a bit much to manger, this is the ideal getaway from the hustle and bustle of daily life.

A great favourite of mine at lunchtimes. Small but comfortable and very friendly with excellent food.
A little bit quirky in a pleasant way.
Has a slightly bohemian feel.
Situated in the County arcade
If you, re looking for somewhere a bit different for a light meal this is it

This is a lovely place, right in the heart of the city, in one of the very nicest of the Leeds arcades, The County Arcade. It gets very busy at lunch time, which tells its own story, but if you go a little earlier or later, you can get a table inside, or even better, one of the comfy chairs or sofa’s.
The food is fabby dabby dodah. It makes sandwiches, cakes, salads, soups, puddings and fruit and drinks. Everything is fresh, organic and they will make any concocton you want, on or off the menu.
What a super place to take the weight off your sling backs, grab a cuppa and indulge in something naughty while you goss with your girlfriend, of just have a quiet moment on your own.
The staff are adorable.