Chef Jono at V&V Reviews Summary

Food Quality

Pros:

• "All of the dishes were an explosion of flavours and creativity."
• "The main of salt baked celeriac was delicious."
• "Every dish was thoroughly thought out and the flavours married perfectly!"
• "The food is absolutely first class."
• "The tasting menu was excellent in every respect, being inventive, memorable, beautiful and truly delicious."
• "Food brilliantly thought through and beautifully crafted/presented."
• "The food was exquisite from the tasting menu."

Cons:

• "The food was at best mediocre, certainly not worth the price tag."
• "Most courses lacked the element of having ingredients you wouldn’t expect to go together, work and therefore wow you which you’d expect for an almost Michelin star priced menu."
• "Some dishes were overpowered by their sauce, I'm looking at you roast scallops, whilst others, rather disappointingly, just didn't come together."
• "The dishes were not balanced and the whole experience was simply forgettable."
• "The ‘sweet and sour’ chicken wasn’t great."
• "For claiming to be an exquisite tasting restaurant the food was very disappointing."
• "Chef Jono's signature dish of roasted scallop with scraps peas and curry sauce was a disappointment."

Service

Pros:

• "Excellent place. Staff really know their stuff."
• "Each course - with its accompanying wine - is presented by a very knowledgeable waiter."
• "The staff were very attentive."
• "Service was attentive and knowledgeable without being obtrusive."
• "Service impeccable too."
• "The service was unbeatable, everything was explained so well it was as if each dish came with its own story."
• "Staff were knowledgeable, attentive and really helpful."

Cons:

• "Service pretty average but the ambience was terrible."
• "Service was extremely friendly although perhaps a bit over eager in its politeness to the point that it felt forced."
• "Once we finished we waited a further 20 minutes before having to ask the bill and actually pay."
• "The staff explained the menu and the food and drink really well, without being patronising or assuming we knew more than we do."
• "The staff were friendly but weren't attentive or indeed knowledgeable about the menu."
• "For what you pay the service / demeanour of one of the staff was dour."
• "The bartender charged the random guy’s bill on my table."

Ambience

Pros:

• "The restaurant is decorated in a 1930s vibe with jazz and blues music playing in background which contributes to the overall atmosphere."
• "Nice atmosphere, not over pretentious and music playing which was a welcomed treat."
• "The atmosphere was wonderfully welcoming."
• "The decor was really nice with intimate lighting and a view of the chefs kitchen."
• "Lovely relaxed restaurant with a very chilled atmosphere."
• "The atmosphere was elegant and welcoming with a somewhat homely touch to it."
• "Lovely small dining space, very intimate with some background music that really added to it."

Cons:

• "I would be curious to try their cocktail bar, but it was dead on the Wednesday we went."
• "The chocolate 'pop rocks' which crackle in your mouth seemed somewhat gimmicky, unnecessary and cliched."
• "Sitting alone in an empty restaurant, placed next to the coat rack, did nothing to stoke any sense of ambiance."
• "Just need to tone down some of the lighting which takes away some of the ambience."
• "The lights above each table are very bright and set at a height which is dazzling the entire evening."
• "The ambiance was somewhat spoiled by a wine fridge in a corner at the end of the restaurant and an open kitchen which didn't really seem to have too much behind it."
• "The ambiance was lacking due to the decor and loud music rather than background music."

Value

Pros:

• "Considering the number and the quality of dishes you get the price wasn’t over the top."
• "Drinks pairings are not stingy unlike other places, you get a decent serving."
• "The food is delicious and we were pleasantly surprised by the portion sizes too."
• "For once I can say that I left a tasting menu meal surprisingly full as well."
• "Not cheap, but worth every penny."
• "5 course tasting menu was enjoyable, although I went when it was 50% off."
• "Had a lovely bottle of red off the menu, and as it was a birthday celebration we were kindly treated to a couple of glasses of champagne on the house too!"

Cons:

• "Not sure it's such good value for money at full price."
• "When you put the wine cost with the taster cost I can't help but feeling a tad disappointed."
• "I think this place has the potential to be good but misses the mark for me right now and definitely not a meal worth £347."
• "There are better meals to be had in Leeds for the money."
• "The meal was very good but not great."
• "However having heard quite a lot about vice and virtue we left slightly disappointed by some of the dishes."
• "Overall, we left underwhelmed from a place we had heard good things about so maybe it was a bad night."