Salvos, Headingley

Welcome to my first restaurant review, well here goes.
Me and the Other Half, on the back of recent academic successes and the fact that she had recently relocated to Headingley, decided to go for a celebratory meal at Salvos Restaurant. Having heard good things from various locations not least a certain programme by a certain Mr Ramsay we were looking forward to a good meal.
We arrived at around 7pm and were told there would be a 45 minute wait, we were expecting this after being told they do not take bookings. Instead of waiting in their bar we instead decided to head over the road to Arcadia Bar for a drink.
On returning we were pleasantly greeted and immediately shown to our table to look through the menu. The staff brought over some complimentary olive bread and oil to nibble on whilst deciding. After much debate, I settled for a starter of Grilled Sardines with lemon, garlic and a spicy caper mayonnaise and a main of Venison with garlic mashed potatoes, grilled courgettes and onion and red wine gravy. The Other Half went for rare roasted thin strips of steak with horseradish coleslaw and a langoustine and king scallop risotto.
The food was stunning, the sardines were perfectly cooked, crispy with soft flesh, I previously had grilled sardines in Barcelona in the middle of the seafood market and these were better than then. I was half way through the second huge sardine before I remembered there was a dressing for them which complimented them perfectly when I eventually tried it. The venison at the Chefs recommendation was served pink and was cooked flawlessly, huge strips of soft juicy meat on buttery garlic mash, my food heaven. The other half’s risotto was also cooked to perfection especially the scallops with creamy flesh and were beautifully seasoned.
Due to it being a celebration we decided to splash out on a dessert and decided on a sharing platter of Salvos five desserts;

Lemon Sorbet
Tiramisu,
Chocolate Torte,
Lemon Torte,
Vanilla Panna cotta with berries

Each were as delicious as the last, even after being forced down due to lack of stomach space. I had chickened out of taking pictures of the other courses, due to the close proximity of other diners but this course just begged for a picture especially with the surrounding tables just staring at for several minutes after its arrival. An aperitif of a Grappa and a cup of coffee finished off the meal and put the finishing touches on the impending food coma.
The service was impeccable, very friendly and accommodating, the restaurant whilst being small with many tables did not seem crowded or cramped but intimate and cosy with a superb atmosphere. The final bill came to around the £80 mark but do not let that put you off as we did go all out with 3 courses, wine and coffee. It is quite possible to eat here for half of that with pasta and pizza dishes around the £9 region. Get yourself there for some fine Italian food.


Salvos Website
109 and 115 Otley Road
Headingley, Yorkshire LS6 3PX
0113 275 5017