Sheffield
Sometimes people ask me where to eat in Sheffield. Very well then, here's my definitive list, each establishment destined for proper celebration in future blog posts.
Modern and fancy
The Orange Bird in Hillsborough offers small plates with South African braai influence, though calling it a BBQ joint would be like describing the Mona Lisa as "a picture of some woman." It's international cuisine with ZA flair, where vegetables receive the same reverence as their meaty counterparts. They serve the full evening menu during Saturday lunch – a godsend for families seeking sophistication without sacrificing bedtimes.
Bench in Nether Edge presents a rotating modern British menu that performs culinary alchemy with Yorkshire produce. The cocktails are devastatingly good.
Italian, but actually good
Domo in Kelham Island offers pleasing both culinary simpletons and gourmands. While your offspring demolish textbook pizzas, you can surrender to slow-cooked ox cheek or venison prepared with Sicilian reverence that would make a nonna weep with pride.
Turkish-ish
Zeugma, Sheffield's (possibly) longest-standing purveyor of charcoal-kissed meats and salads. Their dominance requires two restaurants on the same street – a culinary monopoly I'm perfectly happy to endorse. Modestly priced brilliance.
Mavi Ruya offers a similar Turkish repertoire but with surroundings that won't have you perched on plastic chairs. The food inspires such devotion that my family escorts me there each birthday, knowing full well that nothing makes me happier than their lamb shish, which arrives glistening and smoky like meaty jewels.
Indian
Ashoka has been serving Indian fare since before I was born. Their roadside ads "Never knowingly underspiced" are funnier than anything I could come up with. Modern Indian menu with dishes like the Taxi Driver Curry. Top top food.
Chinese
A Journey to Chengdu in New Era Square stands as a defiant rebuke to anyone who believes Chinese cuisine in Britain must be confined to sweet and sour mediocrity and prawn toast that tastes primarily of disappointment. Here, the kitchen produces Sichuan dishes of such vibrant complexity that your taste buds experience an awakening.
Our food hall fixations
Cutlery Works, the original Sheffield food hall, houses a dozen-odd vendors under one roof. Securing table space once required tactical planning worthy of military strategists, though the burden has eased since competitors emerged.
Cambridge St. Collective spans three floors of carefully selected food purveyors – none of your bland corporate chaff here. Yes, it's pricier than a trip to the chippy, but they've added a cooking school and events for food obsessives. They've also plastered Bourdain's visage on the wall – a bold statement of intent.
Pub Grub
The Rutland Arms chip butty itself (the Rutty Butty) could be the star of its own article, but the menu is a gem.
The Broadfield elevates classic pub fare with a sausage and pie menu that deserves its own commemorative plaque.
Special mention to
Away We Go, a neighbourhood café, in my actual neighbourhood, serves a handful of interesting ales alongside Canarian-inspired small plates that punch well above their modest price point. The food arrives without pretension but with careful attention – proof that culinary excellence can thrive even in Sheffield's quieter corners.
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