The beautiful Pearl Assurance building.
You can’t miss Mr Foley’s. Located in the magnificent Pearl Assurance building (Patrick Foley was its founder) directly across from Victoria Gardens and diagonally opposite the Town Hall, its location couldn’t be more prominent.
A good location is often an excuse to sell rubbish beer at ridiculous prices, but not so for Mr Foley’s. This place has one of the very best selections of beer in the city. As a York expat, it’s always nice to see a few beers from Mr Foley’s owners, York Brewery, and there are always plenty of other guest ales, from places like Revolutions, Ilkley and Summerwine. Craft beer lovers are not left behind either, with Punk IPA on tap and a great bottle selection including beers from Little Creatures, Flying Dog and our favourite Left Hand. There’s a nice selection of single malt whiskies as well. Phew!
The bar area last thing on a Sunday. It’s not usually this quiet!
Inside, the place is very large, with four separate seating areas at different levels, including a little mezzanine directly above the bar. There are lots of sofas and plenty of large tables for big gatherings, and as such Mr Foley’s is often used as a meeting place for regular events (especially, it seems, in the geek community) and as a starting point for big nights out.
There are televisions showing sport, which is not our cup of tea, but they’re small and quiet enough that you’re never going to get the most significant sports crowds. You can also get food here, from a small but appropriate menu of burgers and similar. Everything is all very reasonably priced, especially considering the location.
You’ve probably guessed by now that Mr Foley’s is one of our favourite places in Leeds. If you’re looking for a totally unpretentious place that’s really easy to find and with an amazing choice of beers, this is your new home.
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Overly generous in my opinion. York Brewery sorely need to give the place a lick of paint. It is a grandiose location but is getting really tatty. The food is overpriced and not very well cooked and the seating is generally not very well thought through. Also if you sit upstairs above the bar you’re next to a heater which will fry you alive in fifteen minutes of sitting there. Other than that, it still retains some atmosphere, without ever being exactly cosy. It has a good selection of domestic and world beers and hasn’t sold out to American craft beer or false dawns like Brew Dog. They don’t have Sky TV anymore and unfortunately the place gets ever quieter because of that.
I’ve been here on two separate occasions and on each the beer has been tepid and – dare I say – a little past its best. Similarly, the bar person (a young lady) was surly and disinterested. The last time I visited I had a York Brewery IPA. It wasn’t bad enough to complain but I’m now unlikely to go back. Sorry