Don Starkey checks out the magic of Ivy Asia Leeds and discovers a restaurant that is living up to its hype and still delivering incredible food in one of the most atmospheric settings imaginable.

Walking into Ivy Asia on a cold and rainy Tuesday night in February is very much how Alice must have felt as she tumbled down that rabbit hole into the mystical world of Wonderland.

For if it’s theatre, an explosion of colour, magical food and a sublime sensory overload you’re after, then come on in, because this mind-blowing technicolour reconstruction of a lost continent, has surely got your name on it.

Having firmly planted its samurai sword into the Yorkshire food scene four years ago, The Ivy Asia is still packing a mighty big punch and remains one of our favourite haunts.

From the moment you enter, The Ivy Asia is visually stunning. Stealing the show and providing the design highlight, is the eye-catching luminous green agate flooring, which flows across the bar and restaurant as effortlessly as the immaculate servers do.

With vibrant red and gold dragons, flying fish and a beautiful cherry blossom tree, it’s a place designed to send your senses into overdrive and one that always delivers even before the food arrives.

The team at Ivy Asia have long created a menu that is just as mind-blowing as the décor as they take your taste buds kicking and screaming on a gastronomic rollercoaster.

To get the party started, we settled on a couple of cocktails and the Mango Sling and Saukura and Lychee Martini didn’t disappoint as we eagerly awaited the arrival of our BBQ duck salad and crispy fried tiger prawn starters from the Samurai set menu.

A mouth-watering salt and pepper beef fillet served with ginger noodles and a delicious Salmon Teriyaki with pickled radish and lime followed – both were cooked to perfection and accompanied by steamed rice and wok fried greens with a sesame dressing, it was quite simply, perfection on a plate.

And if you’ve got room to move let alone eat anything else, the Red Dragon dessert is a fitting finale to the show.

Arriving billowing out smoke, it’s a sweet sensation you’ll find hard to resist as soft ice cream, cinnamon sugared doughnuts with chocolate, mango and raspberries collide majestically.

While a cold February night in Yorkshire will never compare to a night in Tokyo, Seoul or Beijing, a visit to Ivy Asia Leeds is about as close as you’ll come and is a stunning nod to the sights, sounds and flavours of the
Far East and Asia.

The Ivy Asia Leeds
55 Vicar Lane, Leeds
T: 0113 531 7990
W: theivyasia.com