The New Conservatory

The New conservatory seems to be a bit of an olé favorite here in Leeds. I heard about the place long before I had a chance to visit, and a few people I know seemed to melt at just the thought of ordering their mushroom risotto and fried Brie. While I was pleased with the overall service provided by the New Conservatory, I was far from blown away. I personally feel its little more than an overpriced, well decorated pub with food to match.
Located in Leeds city center just a stone throw away from Leeds Trinity, the New Conservatory has an ideal location in the heart of the city. Patrons descend down a flight of stairs before being greeted by an atmosphere of bookshelves, couches and even a piano or two. I must admit that the New conservatory has a lovely atmosphere, and is relatively quiet and calm compared to other pubs I have visited in the city. This is largely due to the fact that the New Conservatory seemed to lure in an older, wealthier crowd.
Its food, unfortunately, is not as inspiring. A friend of mine ordered the 10.45 Mushroom risotto, which despite its good quality ingredients, had little taste compared to similar recipes I have tried elsewhere. I ordered a veggie burger for 7.45. It seemed to be two Wetherspoon style patties between run of the mill buns with a side of seasoned fires for almost double the price. We ordered a side of nachos as well. It seemed that very little effort was put into its preparation, and at 5.45, was incredibly expensive for what it was. Our server was friendly and attentive but impersonal, which I didn’t feel was a big deal.
Furthermore, while the atmosphere is top notch and the employees are friendly, the food at the new conservatory is very overpriced. I may go back for a drink or two (also very expensive — cider– 3.70) in the future, but I’m not sure about dining here again.
Atmosphere — ⁵⁄₅
Food — ³⁄₅
Price — ²⁄₅
service — ⁴⁄₅
overall — 3.5÷5

Just a quick one from me today. I love the feel in this place. The book shelves, the knooks, the grand piano.
Its just a nice place to be and for the last year or two has been my fall back for visitors who need to be «entertained». Thats your parents, parents of partners. Friends who you haven’t known through thick and thin. Anyone whose tastes might be offended by the luke warm greggs steak bake or a fatso’s sandwich.
Their food is great, the teas and juices too. A fine show of alcohol too from the rather attractive bar. Staff are friendly and the music is usually inoffensive. Perhaps a little pricey some might say but with a groupon voucher for almost every day of the week you’ll find a way to enjoy the conservatory even without a big budget.
One to try for sure!

It must be 10 years since I was last in the Conservatory. I’m not sure if it has been shut down or just slipped off my radar? I got a 2−4−1 voucher so decided to venture down with my friend for a midweek meal. Plus it was happy hour on drinks, so it made a nice cheap evening.
The bar is very warm and welcoming, lots of large leather chairs and chesterfields give it an atmosphere of an old gentleman’s club. The walls are crammed with more paperbacks than Leeds library, so this would be a good spot to spend a wet afternoon alone, curled up with a good novel.
The food was excellent value — ranging from £7-£12 for a main course. The portions were rather on the generous side. I had lasagne which came in a huge bowl and the meat to pasta ratio was very favourable. My friend had the pie of the day and this was also of an impressive size and crammed full of chicken.
A great hidden gem and one I won’t forget about again!

Right,
This is a long overdue review for one of Leeds’ more novel bars (and I’m not saying that just because there’s books on the walls of the bar.). It’s mostly because it’s one of the bars I remember best since moving to Leeds 12 and a half years ago.
Anyway. The New Conservatory (or TNC as I’ll abbreviate it to) is definitely an usual bar — more like a library than a pub. It’s located downstairs on Albion Street, just across from (affects Ed Byrne impression) the Carphone Warehouse (goes aww at the memory of that little mobile phone that used to by on the adverts — was he called Mobliy?!). The bar itself is gorgeous — lovely dark wood panelling, plenty of seats & lots of the aforementioned books on the walls (for some reason there are a multitude of copies of «99 Years Of The Navy» — this was obviously not exactly JK Rowling in terms of sales. Unless TNC bought the last 15 copies as they were selling out so quickly.).
I’ll be honest here — I know people always say that, but it’s not as good as it used to be. Partly because they painted over the picture of the (somewhat scary) monkey eating a grape (I like unusual décor) but mostly because in recent years it seems to have become more of a gastropub than a bar.
However. If you’re looking for somewhere unusual to take someone in the daytime whilst in Leeds city centre (such as I did the other day) then it’s an excellent choice. There’s outside seating for the rare occasions it’s sunny — and with it being a pedestrianised area no traffic (apart from the occasional wannabe gangster blaring out 50 Cent from his stereo on his bicycle. Yes. Bicycle. You truly do see some odd sights in Leeds.).
There’s also the aforementioned lovely interior, a very interesting bar with a range of drinks and quite often live music (there’s even also a piano — oh, if only they’d let me knock out my acoustic rendition of the Pet Shop Boys classic «It’s A Sin» without being thrown out. again).
The food is good, the prices are not overly cheap but it is the city centre and it’s also a bit different to the usual identikit bars that so often swamp our city centres.
I’d say it was definitely worth a visit :)

Not been here in years and years! (25 I think!)
The last time I was here it was quite dark.
What a pleasant surprise as I descended the stairs into a light, bright room.
Plus there was The Happy Mondays music playing, ace!
The bar is situated in the middle of the room and it is surrounded by richly coloured furnishings.
It looks like a gentleman’s club but not as stuffy.
There are quite a few mirrors dotted around the place which gives the illusion of extra light and size.
The staff are very talkative.
What a lovely place this is.
I opted for a pint of Pale Ale which was very refreshing.
I was going to eat here but I called into my sisters on the way down and was press ganged into having lunch there.
So food will have to wait until next time.
There is a piano to one side and on the outside of this alcove there are some quite large speakers so it looks like there could be live music on offer here!
Being underground I bet the acoustics are great here and I shall have to check their website to see what is on offer.
I checked out the cocktail menu and it isn’t very expansive. Although there is a large array of spirits behind the bar.
5 stars because everything I tried and saw was top notch!

Visited with a friend for a catch up and some pre-​theatre food. Upon descending the stairs we entered the wide open room centered by the bar and sparsely populated with people sat here and there. We took a seat by some of the stocked bookshelves and after a while of being seated we were presented with menu’s offering sandwiches, a selection of pub staples and a selection of mezze’s.
We took to ordering at the bar and after a short while was presented with our sandwiches a silver bucket of chips. The sausages in my sandwich were scolding hot but the chips mediocre and dry.
Upon reminder the requested condiments were presented.
Overall it offered pleasant surrounds and polite, slightly preoccupied staff. I imagine it would host the themed evenings brilliantly and otherwise it offers a peaceful venue to stop by.

This is one of my solid wee hide aways, and I don’t think that the feeling of descending into a secret underground jazz club will ever disappear upon entering here. (Especially on a Wednesday, when the jazz is in fact live.) As I mentioned before, I’m not a regular, but when the time arises to visit I’m happy.
It’s spacious, if you go on the right night (I’d venture not a weekend, perhaps) you can grab a table and soak in the ambience, enjoy a beer and feel a million miles from Leeds. The original structure of the building means it looks very vintage, which is always a boon, and with a solid menu of drinks to choose from you’re set for a solid few hours.
I really can’t recommend the jazz nights enough, and if you wish to escape the music for a moment to chat, there’s a perfect nook to enjoy the sounds but still hear one another chat freely. I’ve one slight niggle, which is that on my last visit the beer I chose was off, but not being one to complain easily (terribly British, old chum) my friend exchanged it on my behalf. Bad beer is never a good thing, but it happens to the best of bars, so here’s hoping that was a one off! And, to clarify, the replacement beer was a treat.
I’ve yet to take advantage, but it’s worth mentioning this is one of the few pubs I can recall in the town centre with a pool table! I used to be an avid player, so I’ll have to get myself here more regularly to get back in the game. It’s a lovely gem of Leeds, so do pop in when you get the chance.

Called in on a Saturday. was told to sit in upper area.25 mins before we saw a
was then sat on bar for 10 mins. God knows what its like if its busy. Won’t find out tho as we won’t return Food was nice tho although expensive for what it was

A quirky little place nestled under the city. All the usual drinks available and a varied food menu. A good balance struck between quiet enough to have a chat but still having an atmosphere.

I love this place. First found going to a wedding reception years ago I have since became an avid fan.
It’s full of cosy little nooks to hide away ans chat in, fairly ornate décor, bookshelves galore, a stage area and even pool tables hidden away.
Read signs about a Wednesday night Jazz session which sounds fun but not made it to one yet.
I just love curling up on the sofa type seats with the comfy pillows and getting engrossed in my book.
Food and Drink is varied in options making a great place whenever you fancy an outing.

Looking for a lunch place other than Pizza Express, it was the perfect excuse to head to the New Conservatory. We’d been talking about coming for drinks or a bite, and really liked the décor and ambiance when we came in. It’s really well lit for a place underground. I appreciated that I didn’t feel like I was in a cave, but a cool kind of library or dining room of a cruise ship. The food was pretty unimpressive and the table service was crazy slow, so my review is really resting on how much I enjoyed being in the «library» (where you can either exchange or buy previously read books) and how much everyone with me said we’d love to come back… just for drinks.

It seems that The New Conservatory has had a bit of an image change over the past year. Despite growing up in Leeds, I’d never set foot in here until a friend who studies at the University suggested we meet for a drink here.
It’s a bar, café, food kind of place. Descending some stairs to enter, it has a light and spacious feel once you’re inside, despite being below space level. There’s a central bar and the surrounding area features a performance space, piano, pool table and — here’s where I was totally won over — a seating area with shelves stacked with proper books. A library.
We came in search of Sunday lunch, and although we’d missed the live music, we did indeed have the lunch. The menu features gastro ish pub fare, nothing exciting but nothing wrong with it. And the portions are enormous! My tasty roast also featured real vegetables, real roast potatoes and suggested a competent kitchen that actually cooks things.
Apparently the jazz nigh here on Wednesday is worth heading down to. It’s the kind of place I would feel comfortable just dropping in by myself and soaking up the atmosphere. And according to the website there’s a poker and pool night on Tuesdays…
In a way I feel like I should give the place more stars, but there’s a couple of things — sloppiness in messy bar top, friendly but not exactly swift service — that perhaps stop it being super great for me. But then I’m a bit fussy about that. I can say, if you haven’t been in a while I wholeheartedly recommend a revisit.

Nice place, expensively fitted out with an upmarket feel let down by very poor service. Young inexperienced people with no one manager in attendance to orchestrate n kick ass. Shame.

This café and bar is on Albion Place in the centre of town, a pedestrianised street with a few job temping agencies on. From the outside it looks grand yet beautiful. There are hanging baskets with red and yellow flowers in full bloom next to the stone pillars. In the summer they sometimes have ornate white iron furniture out the front to enjoy the sunshine with a beer of cup of tea. It is quite a posh place to go for drinks in the evening and is rather expensive.

This place is Ok for somewhere to get out of the shopping scrum that Leeds often is on a busy afternoon. It’s down some steps but despite its large seating area it feels somewhat claustrophobic due to the lack of outside facilities and daylight. The service is OK but I wouldn’t ever have a place like this as a regular haunt