Duke of York, York

Being in a shopping street just off the Shambles this pub tends to get a bit infested with shoppers and tourists rather than locals, however the beer range is some compensation. The pub itself has rather a cluttered layout, with areas extending off either side of the central bar and more room upstairs, and with fairly standard furnishings and decor, but is not bad if you avoid the busiest times. Ales on were 3 from Leeds Brewery, 2 from Camerons and Brass Castle Bad Kitty, plus a couple of Lilley's fruit concoctions. There were some reasonable craft keg brews on as well.

An early Thursday afternoon visit to the Duke of York found an empty pub, which was odd because a fire breathing entertainer on a really high unicycle had drawn large crowds to the square outside. Directly ahead of the entrance is the bar area with a counter that runs up the right facing seating to the left. More seating is found further left and to the right of the entrance is a thin strip of seating that runs along the front windows. This area is dimly lit with a low ceiling and an exposed brick fireplace on the right-hand wall. A flight of stairs to the left of the entrance leads up to some more seating, a small dining room and the toilets at the rear. There are no televisions, but there was some background music playing. The bar supports premium and craft keg and there are three banks of four hand pumps. Some were doubled up, so the cask options were Leeds Pale, Midnight Bell and Best alongside Camerons Brewery’s Crown, Rudgate’s Oliver Twist, Saltaire’s Aquilla and a couple of Lilley’s ciders. Food is available, the burgers are priced just north of £15. I found the service to be polite and the beer choice was good, but the atmosphere was non-existent. Yes the pub was empty, but I got the feeling that this is a naturally sedate pub even when full.

A multi roomed pub, in prime position near the top of the Shambles and also attracts a bit of an audience outside when the street performers are around. Lots of Leeds Brewery beers to choose from compared to the Eagle and Child, plus a couple of guests. These were Saltaire Amarillo and Ainsty Ales Flummoxed Farmer. Very much a tourist trap, with people mostly calling in to dine.

Apart from one friendly local and his dog this place was full of Yorks 30 something trendy crowd and a few tourists on my Thursday evening visit , 12 handpulls in 3 banks of 4 , the banks at either end of the bar doubled up with Leeds Brewery beers , the middle bank had 3 in use with Cameron Strongarm ,Hawkshead Lager and a tasty Wylam Cascade . Easily the busiest pub of the night , not my sort of place despite the decent beer selection.

Enjoyed our visit here last month. Selection of Leeds brewery beers on and we chose Leeds Boycott's Best which was fine. Walls adorned with photos and posters and time can be spent wandering round to see them when not oo busy.

I went in here soon after visiting the Eagle and Child, the new Leeds pub in High Petergate. As with all the Leeds Brewery pubs I've been in, this building too has been painstakingly, almost faultlessly adapted, if seen from an aesthetic point of view, but as a pub it is totally lacking in warmth and ambience. As with the new pub, there are 12 hand pumps, with Leeds's core range duplicated on a second set of four, though here the Midnight Bell gives way to a cider on one set. There are four guest beers. I don't rate the Leeds pubs much as pubs - perhaps they'll improve with age (or perhaps I'll become less fastidious, who knows).

The Duke of York is a new pub which is situated in the middle of the shopping area,so very handy for a drink while having a look round the shops. Once inside i had a drink in the ground level room,i did'nt take a look upstairs,the ground level room is split into two halfs,the left side has normal tables and chairs,i think the right side had a few settees,but the pub was so busy on my Saturday afternoon visit to get a proper look round. The pub is a Leeds brewer tied house,there was a very good choice of real ales on the bar,i had a drink of Leeds Pale which went down well,the other beers i noted were Yorkshire Gold,Best,Imperial and Midnight Bell all from Leeds Brewery,i did'nt note any guest beers. I would have prefered to have done this pub when less busy,but i still quite liked the pub and will no doubt go in again when in York. Pub visited 23/5/2015