You may think as a committed Christian I may take offence at Reds’ marketing strategy which makes its food the object of devout worship. But then I found ‘Life of Brian’ hilarious rather than disrespectful and similarly Reds use their irreverent humour to make a serious point: this food is GLORIOUS and deserving of our praise!
Things start off well while I wait for Holly with a Howdy Doody Shake, the divine combination of banana and peanut butter that tastes as good as it sounds. We calculate our order to suit our budget (£30 per head) and for starters opt for a combo of barbecue wings and ribs. I should warn you the wings are seriously spicy but cooked to perfection while the meat falls off the rib bones so fine as only this amount of slow cooking can produce (some eight hours!)
For the main my choice is the Juicy Lucifer that comes with a warning about its heat, not due to the spices but the amount of cheese between each layer. So if you cut the entire mound of meat in half it allows some of the heat to escape but you really do need the hand wipes, it’s a messy affair. And whilst not as spicy as the wings it is a bit of a creeper, I’m zinging! Holly has the donut burger which is so copious she is overfaced but no worries here – simply box it up and take it home for supper to share with her cat Buddy!
Even though we’re both bloated the desserts look too good to ignore so I have crumble just like me grandma used to make it and Holly makes it through a layered sundae to cool down some of the tongue-tingling heat still around from the wings.
The service here is a pleasure, constantly checking in but only for a second or two then on their rounds again. And we get told about the Pilgramage where staff from the Leeds Red’s go Stateside to check out how it’s down in the Deep South – it really is that authentic. We dined at the Leeds city centre branch right next to the Corn Exchange but there is a recently opened Red’s in Headingley too. A highly recommended dining experience that feels like a little piece of Florida has flown over and landed in Leeds, replete with expert chefs producing the best barbecued beef known to man!
Reviewer: Rich Jevons
Food photography: Holly Spanner