Did you know that Le Pain Quotidien also serve dinner in the evenings? We had no idea, after having only visited LPQ for breakfast and lunch before, but they offer a sophisticated evening menu to complement their all day breakfast and lunch options.

We headed down to the gorgeous LPQ in Victoria Gate this week to sample the evening experience there. When we arrived, it wasn’t busy upstairs, but this lent itself to the calm, laid-back atmosphere of the stripped back, exposed wood look of the interior, dominated by communal tables and cute little two-seater tables overlooking the shopping centre below.

After some debate, we settled on a smoked chicken club tartine (a French open sandwich) and a chicken and leek pie. The latter was the star of the show; the chicken was perfectly seasoned and encased in a well cooked pastry casing, and the little jug of gravy on the side went down a treat.

The tartine was huge, and filling enough to serve as a dinner. The smoked chicken was nice served cold, with the smoky mayo dotted across it providing a real flavour explosion. The chorizo crisps were on another level of yum, and the organic egg sliced over the top of the sandwich so good that our little girl stole it off our plates.

For pudding, you can order a full-on dessert, or one of the bakery’s sweet goodies. We opted to sample both approaches, ordering a seasonal crumble – apple and pear – and a blueberry muffin. We sadly didn’t get the chance to taste the muffin as our little one wolfed it down ridiculously quickly – the smile on her face said it all though.

The crumble was delicious and arguably the best part of the meal; you could smell the cinnamon as the crumble was brought to the table and it was divine served with freshly whipped cream. We also ordered two flat whites and they were as smooth and silky as any good flat white should be.

LPQ is not one of the more obvious options in Leeds for dinner, but if it’s relaxed French fare you’re after, it’s a great choice. They also sell a range of spreads and jams in their shop, a highlight of which is the hazelnut spread. Imagine a purer tasting Nutella without the chocolate taste and you’ll get somewhere near this. Delicious!