A few bits and pieces this time around. Lunch at an award-winning pub, some thoughts on the passing of Humphrey Smith, the owner of Samuel Smiths Brewery in Tadcaster, and a return to one of Halifax's most popular pubs a few months into new ownership to see how things are going....
I had visited the Highland Laddie earlier in the year and had decided that when I next visited I would l try some of the highly-acclaimed food at this award-winning pub tucked away to the west of Leeds city centre between the Kirkstall and Burley Roads. I had originally booked for the beginning of June with lunch here followed by 20/20 cricket at Headingly where Yorkshire and Lancashire. Howevèr waiting for a blocked drain to be cleared scuppered that plan, so I had re-scheduled another attempt for a few weeks later when Yorkshire were playing host to Durham.
And so I duly made it to the flat-iron shaped Highland Laddie for lunch. A brief recap: This former Peter Walker pub (who became part of Allied Breweries who owned Tetleys) had closed in 2023 but then in 2024 the Highland - as it was then called - was acquired by Sam Pullan and Nicole Deighton from the successful and much-acclaimed Empire Cafe in Leeds city centre. The intention was to create a pub that would appeal to both those who wanted a decent pint of real ale and those who were searching for a fine dining experience based around traditional pub classics and small plates in what is essentially a traditional pub setting. And so in April 2025 after a sympathetic refurbishment the Highland Laddie - its original name and more recent nickname - reopened its doors. From the start, it attracted interest from curious locals and inquisitive food-lovers, and the positive reviews started to appear, culminating in October 2025 when it was named the Number 1 pub in the 100 Best Pubs in Britain, published by the Good Food Guide.
I had got the train over from Halifax and arrived in Leeds for 11.30, but due to the circuitous road system in central Leeds it took around 25 minutes for my Uber to cover what is essentially a distance of about a mile and a half from the station. I was booked in for 12, so arrived just in time. It had been the only time I could get in on the day in what is essentially a small, two-roomed pub, the restaurant bit to the right as you go in with the bar on the left. I walked in, I was welcomed by the lovely staff, and was immediately shown to my table as food and drinks menus was bought and a glass of water was poured from a bottle already on the table. I went back to the bar and ordered a pint of Goose Eye Bitter, and returned to the table to peruse the menu. There were bar snacks, small plates, and larger ones, and it took a few minutes to decide what to go for.
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| Zoom in to see what was on |
In the end I went for food that we used to have as kids growing up, or at least a twist on them. From the bar snacks, I chose Mucky Fat and homemade sourdough, which came toasted with a little pot of brown gloop, and was delicious and almost indulgent considering its humble origins (nobody had heard of sourdough when I was growing up).
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| Mucky Fat, homemade sourdough |
To follow I'd ordered Keema Shepherd's Pie with Poppadom Mash and Carrot Pickle, which was from the larger plates section. It arrived in a deceptively-small dish along with some chips stacked in another pot which I'd ordered to go with it. The shepherd's pie was delicious, the mince beautifully spiced as was the yellow mash which topped it. It was also rather filling - all killa, no filla, I would say if I was a rapper. It meant that the chips - which were proper chips - were largely redundant. I had enjoyed everything I'd eaten, but I realised I should have done it as the couple on the next table did. Their respective builds suggested that they clearly loved their food, and they knew what to do here. They ordered several small plates between them, including one of the oysters that lie in wait in an ice bath at the side of the bar, and not a morsel was left on any of the plates.
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| Keema Shepherds Pie, Poppadom Mash, Carrot Pickle; sorry I don't do Insta so just a snap! |
But what about the beer, I hear you ask. Well my Goose Eye Bitter was absolutely delicious and in great condition, and definitely worth a 4 on the NBSS scale, which was a complete bonus, as I hadn't really come here for the beer! I went into the other room with the bar once my table was cleared, and just took in the atmosphere of the place. The staff were unfailingly pleasant, chatty, and happy to help and advise as customers came in ones and twos. I ordered another pint, this time of the 4.2% Quantum State from Atom, one of the other three beers on hand pump. This hazy session pale was another very good pint (NBSS 3.5). I went back for another half of the Goose Eye as I ordered and waited for my Uber to take me to my hotel. And that was lunch at the Highland Laddie. It's not cheap, but the quality is remarkable. And I look forward to going back soon to try some small plates. I'm not sure if I'll bother with the oysters though....
And to cap a good day, Yorkshire managed to beat Durham at Headingly a few hours later. Durham batted first and got off to a blistering start, with former Yorkshire batter Alex Lees a striking an impressive 73. The Yorkshire bowlers pinned them down in the second part of the innings, but they still reached 205-8. So the rate required was over 10 an over, but Yorkshire started well with skipper Jonny Bairstow scoring 66. A couple of wickets were lost, but Moeen Ali came to the rescue and struck 7 huge sixes in a superb and quickfire 60. The rate slowed down and the target of 206 was slipping a little until Matthew Revis got into his stride with a few lusty blows, striking a 6 off the penultimate ball of the final over to clinch a 5 wicket win for Yorkshire....
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News broke last week that Humphrey Smith, the arch-traditional owner of Tadcaster-based family brewers Samuel Smith had passed away. A very reclusive man who never gave interviews and shunned the limelight, he was nonetheless better-known to many pub-goers than the average brewery boss. This was because of various rules and regulations decreed by Humphrey: Sam Smiths pubs don't allow mobile phones, laptops, and have no TVs, jukeboxes, or fruit machines. A bit of live music or karaoke? No. Swearing? No effing chance. He was the ultimate mystery shopper who would turn up unannounced at any one of his pubs at any time and any transgressions of these rules that he found or otherwise came to his attention would most likely lead to the licensee being told to leave immediately and the pub closed there and then. This no-nonsense approach means that within an estate that runs into the hundreds, typically over a third are closed at any one time.
Eccentricities like this aside, Sams do have some wonderful pubs not just in their North Yorkshire heartland but in many parts of the country. Pubs such as the Colpitts in Durham, the rambling White Horse (aka Nellies) in Beverley, the Bluebell in the Manchester suburb in Manchester, and the Cittie of Yorke in central London are great places to go. Their only cask beer, Old Brewery Bitter, fermented in traditional slate Yorkshire Squares, can, on its day, be excellent, whilst some of their bottled beers, though not bottle-conditioned, such as the strong Yorkshire Stingo, have a strong and loyal following. And I for one am happy not to listen to swearing, the drop of a fruit machine, or be faced by multiple TV screens showing endless rolling news, soaps or game shows. Sometimes the murmur of gentle conversation or the rhythm of a ticking clock can be quite cathartic. It means a step back to simpler times, away from the crazy world we live in now, as you would expect from a company that still uses traditional dray horses to deliver to their pubs in and around Tadcaster.
Humphrey was a wealthy man and as well as the pubs, he owned a substantial amount of real estate across the country, including plenty around Tadcaster where he could at times behave like a feudal landlord. Such as when he caused ire and frustration locally a few years ago when after heavy rain the River Wharfe flooded the town and washed away part of the main bridge connecting one part of the town to the other. A plan to build a temporary bridge nearby failed to materialise because Humphrey wouldn't allow it as it was on his land, resulting in a lengthy detour for local residents. And sometimes his decisions were baffling and didn't make commercial sense, or so it seemed; at the Colliers Arms in Elland, for example, a conservatory was built overlooking the canal and was used as a restaurant which became very popular and therefore generating money. Humphrey walked in one day and ordered its immediate closure and demolition. And yet people also spoke of his acts of kindness and generosity, so clearly a man of contrasts.
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| One of the best Samuel Smiths pubs - Colpitts, Durham |
Humphrey was certainly an enigma and an interesting character. I never met him but I was intrigued enough to once start an email to the company to request an interview with him for this blog, although I knew he was publicity-shy. But I genuinely wanted to know what made him tick and as a one-man band with an open mind and a limited audience I didn't see myself as being a particular threat. But then I thought that's a daft idea and I discarded the email. Mind you, he certainly would have said no and probably have barred me from his pubs if he knew I'd managed to take pictures in a number of his them over the years.... His son Samuel is likely to step into his shoes and it will be interesting to see how Humphrey's passing impacts this fascinating company over the coming years.
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Meanwhile last Sunday I returned to the Cross Keys in Siddal near Halifax for the first time since my friends Mike and Lisa Pedley took over a few months ago. The pub had previously been run by Hugh Kirby who I had got to know pretty well over the years. Unfortunately Hugh had not been too well and so decided last autumn to come out of the popular village local which had become known as one of the best real ale pubs in Calderdale. The pub closed suddenly but Hugh had sold it on to a local guy who has a number of pubs in the area. A month or two later. it was announced that the Keys would be re-opening and Mike and Lisa would be the new licensees. This was quite fitting as they had been regulars at the pub and had stepped in to cover when Hugh went on holiday.
And so back to the afternoon in question. Live music was being provided by my friends Blood, Sweat, and Beers, Brighouse's finest rock band. It was therefore an ideal opportunity to see how Mike and Lisa were getting on and enjoy some live music at the same time. I got the bus from home into Halifax, with my old friends Rob and Jay plus Rocco the dog who were already on the bus, heading in the same direction. We had a short wait at the bus station for the bus to Siddal, and after a journey of around 10 minutes we arrived at the Cross Keys just as the band were starting up.
On the bar were 6 hand pumps featuring a number of beers from Craven, Black Sheep, Darkland, and Wensleydale. I went for a Yorkshireman Blonde from Craven which I took outside to where the band were playing. "Good afternoon, Chris" said the band's singer and frontman Fletch over the microphone as I went over to grab a seat next to my friends Harry and Mary. And what a great afternoon it was as the band played classic rock and blues songs from the likes of the Doors, Van Morrison, Primal Scream, the Rolling Stones, and David Bowie. We were treated to a blistering version of the Lynyrd Skynyrd classic Freebird and in a nod to the ongoing World Cup, in which as I write England are through to the last 8, they brought the afternoon's proceedings to a conclusion with a version of Three Lions with all and sundry joining in.
It was good to see the Cross Keys busy like it used to be. A few people had travelled from Brighouse to see the band, but the vast majority were locals, with a few familiar faces from the past. It all seems to be going well for Mike and Lisa, who have made a few tweaks to the pub here and there, but otherwise it remains pretty much as it used to be. The beers I tried - Craven Yorkshireman Blonde, Craven Yorkshireman Best Bitter, and Kirkstall Best Bitter, which came on whilst I were there, were all in decent condition, with the Kirkstall probably my favourite of the three.
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| Lisa and a few views of the Cross Keys |
We'd had a great afternoon at this friendly pub, and I intend to not leave it so long before I return to the Cross Keys, and it was good to see the pub busy and doing well....
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