Hyde Park Book Club — Restaurant in Leeds

We had been a few times after lockdown as a couple after the new menu was launched and we found the food is great, although waiting times can get around half an hour or more on every single occasion, regardless of whether the place is busy. In February 2022, to celebrate my birthday I invited a group of friends on a Saturday to run their first Parkrun and be treated to breakfast at HPBC. When we arrived, I tried to get a menu for my friends to look at. No member of staff seemed to notice us and after 10 minutes or so I noticed other customers took it on themselves to dig onto a pile of papers next to the bar and found daytime menus, so I did the same. When I went to order (table of 7 people, this was 10:20 and the bar opens at 10:00) we were told we couldn’t order anything but bagels because the place was too busy and the kitchen was overwhelmed. We had waited 20 minutes in the street until they opened and there were 3 other tables (2 tables of 2 and one table of 3) in the restaurant in addition to us. I challenged that decision of the waitress and she said that she was really sorry but there was a backlog in the kitchen and she confirmed we could not order anything but bagels and that we would need to wait half an hour for the food. We decided to order the food and wait. We were quite surprised to see that the tables of 2 and 3 who arrived later than us could order anything they liked from the brunch side, not just bagels, as we saw that being served to them while we were there. When we were leaving, I went to speak to the waiter and I told her that despite we were in for the Brunch menu, we had all been quite pleased to try the bagels, so overall it had turned out well.

2nd May we went again. I have since been reading reviews of other customers who found staff rude and make you feel like you would rather not be at HPBC. I can only describe what happened today as being bullied by the same waitress who served us in the previous occasion. If you go to a restaurant to eat, having a member of staff making you feel awful for being there and trying to get you to leave is an awful feeling. To that one needs to add that we are foreign and it does feel very weird that one particular member of staff targets you to try and ruin your experience when you go out for a meal or try to get you to leave. Today I went in to order (table of 2) and there was the same blonde long hair waitress. Before I could open my mouth, she gave me a disapproval look and told me there was a 40-minute wait for the kitchen, to which I said we were happy to wait. Then I ordered two chicken avocado bagels with a poached egg in each. This waitress told me they do not put eggs in bagels. THEIR ENTIRE INSTAGRAM PHOTO PROFILE ARE PICTURES OF BAGLES WITH EGGS IN THEM! So, obviously there is something very off going on with this member of staff. I explained that I have ordered bagels with eggs before with no problem, but she still refused until another member of staff behind the bar came and said that HPBC can add eggs to bagels and made her take my order. Then I said I also wanted 2 harsh browns on the side, and I was told they had run out of harsh browns. While waiting we saw harsh browns being served and after the 40 minutes had passed and people on tables who had arrived later than us had their food served we went to enquire. They told us the food would be out in a minute but we had to wait 20 more minutes. As more food for people who had ordered later than us kept coming out, we went to speak to another member of staff. They were mortified at the way we had been treated and couldn´t offer any excuse for the unfair treatment we received from his colleague (eggs, harsh brown). Surprise, surprise! When our food arrived they had added the two harsh browns as a way of apology, because obviously they had never run out of them. HPBC would have a much nicer atmosphere if that member of staff was trained on some basic how to stop bullying your customers manners.

Ps. New chicken supplier much worse...

Since we have all been working from home for such a long time I chose to have my 1 to 1 with my manager at the Hyde Park Book Club. The outdoor area was set out nicely with sanitizers at each table together with the menu which did indicate a wide option of things to eat. The staff at the entrance was most welcoming, enquired about whether I had the "Covid notification app" and since i did not I was invited to leave my name and address with them as required for the reopening of such establishments. My manager and I, like other parties were allowed our own separate table and served by other very cheerful and accommodating staff. It was reassuring and comfortable and of course great to have my favourite coffee while we had our discussion. We were not rushed but were very comfortable with the surroundings even though our meeting went on for some time. Thank to all the staff and I can certainly recommend this restaurant, their service, the ambience and the...

Vegan eatery - seems to have changed a bit from previous years where more was on offer. So you can come here not worried about a chance of encountering non-vegan food now. Gluten free not much of an option - basically two basic dishes at most when we visited in September. Club was active in basement, making it almost unbearably loud in the main restaurant, the bass no doubt helping with the digestion by churning the food for you. So, impossible to talk over dinner, and the atmosphere had more in common with a student flat common room - not messy, but not smart. The room next door had an acoustic guitar player in (tables were all full sadly, so that choice was out). So maybe picking your room choice carefully is key. But I didn’t really enjoy it. Plenty of seating outside though. If you’re stopping somewhere on the Otley Run and need vegan food, it’s spot on. Staff were nice, but as I say, it looks more like a student bar run by students, than something its name would suggest, which sounds a bit...