Charlie Brett's at the Allerton, Alwoodley, Leeds

Regular readers will recall that in the early days of this blog we used to go to Leeds Seventeen. We used to think that for value it was unbeatable. The quality was fantastic for the price; we remarked on it every time. It closed about two years ago. A placeholder website replaced its old one, leading me to think that it would re-open. It has now. It's an outstation of Brett's Fish Restaurant in Headingley. I booked online for Sunday lunch and we went today.

The signage outside has all changed for the better (the old sign was hideous). The main entrance used to lead straight into a lounge/bar, through which you walked to the restaurant. That bar has been turned into the restaurant. The furniture is the same.

I had seen a full menu online and thought it looked nice - fundamentally fish, but they're a fish restaurant so only to be expected.  It didn't mention Sunday Lunch. The chap who seemed to be the manager told us that there was a special Sunday menu today and took our drinks order (Diet Coke and Tea). He didn't though give us a menu, and there was none on the various boards on the walls. The waitress came to take our order. She told us the menu. Starters were Whitebait (one of my very favourite restaurant dishes) or Minestrone. We chose one of each. Main courses were Sunday Roast (Beef or Pork), or Fish and Chips. Again we chose one of each.

The minestrone came in a massive bowl and seemed to be home made. Mary enjoyed it:

The Whitebait were plentiful and came with a sharp tartare sauce. Unfortunately they didn't come with a slice of lemon or a plate so I ate them with my fingers using the tartare sauce as a dip. They were very nice but I feel the presentation was slightly lacking:

Mary was very impressed with the Fish and Chips. We often visit fish restaurants, all over Yorkshire and beyond, and this was a really good example:

You may also be aware that we eat Sunday Lunch out nearly every week. My Yorkshire Pudding was superb - one of the best I have had recently. The beef however, as I think you will be able to surmise from the picture, was very dry:

We were now ready to pay the bill. You will remember that we had not seen a menu, nor been told the price of anything. So we tried to guess. We both got it wrong. The two course lunch only cost £10 each, plus drinks. It's great to see that the tradition for good value is being continued.