I promised I would cover some of the restaurants I visited in Leeds in more detail. The first restaurant we stopped at was La Rambla, a large tapas restaurant near to the county hall.

Having just spent five hours on the train, I was ready to refuel. As I was dining with three friends, we asked Vivi the chef to send us her best dishes, we were keen to try dishes we wouldn’t usually order ourselves.

The procession of dishes began with a very safe Tortilla with a slight twist, Vivi had put some courgette through it which was lovely. This was served with a traditional alioli. The perfect dish to deal with those hunger pangs.

Becky and I had tried Pintxos in Bilbao, so these had something to live up to. House made tomato jam slathered on crusty bread with goats cheese and green pepper, it’s Spanish comfort food and tastes great with a beer (we played it safe with a soft drink ahead of the gin tasting!)

The Croquetas Del Dia change daily, they were cheese and chorizo flavoured when we there and were served with some more of that garlic alioli.

Having broken us in Vivi upped the ante with Calamares A La Andaluza, deep fried squid rings with homemade citrus alioli. I was pleased to find that they were neither rubbery nor too fishy. Vivi managed to change my mind about calamari and I even came back and ordered a similar dish at Cadiz in Edinburgh.

Chorizo Al Vino is one of my favourites.

Eat them alongside Patatas Bravas as Vivi recommends for the perfect balance of flavours and textures.

The Pulpo A La Parilla was new for me, grilled octopus in a tomato based sauce. It wasn’t fishy or as chewy as I was expecting, and had more of a meaty flavour.

The Gambas Al Ajillo featured big juicy prawns in a garlic and chilli flavoured oil. Despite being absolutely stuffed, we soldiered on.

Our final dish (because we literally couldn’t fit any more in!) was Rollos De Pollo, chicken breast wrapped in bacon with cheese, caramelised onions and brandy sauce.

Thank you so much to Vivi for all the wonderful food, I’ll definitely be back when I’m next in Leeds!