The Best Pubs in Leeds

The best pubs in Leeds are Whitelock's in Turk's Head Yard, off Briggate, which has been pouring since 1715, The Highland Laddie on Cavendish Street, named Britain's best pub by the Good Food Guide in 2025, and The Victoria on Great George Street, back from the dead with its listed interiors restored. After that it depends what you want: a riverside pint in Kirkstall, a Sam Smith's bargain, a Victorian boozer by the river or a Sunday in Meanwood. We have done the legwork. You just have to do the drinking.

Whitelock's Ale House, Turk's Head Yard

Whitelock's sits down a narrow yard off Briggate and has been trading since 1715, which makes it the oldest pub in the city. Stained glass, a pressed-tin bar and a courtyard that fills up the second the sun shows. There are ten cask hand pulls, usually with Timothy Taylor's, Kirkstall, Five Points and Ilkley on, and the fish finger sandwich is the correct bar snack. Come on a weekday afternoon if you want a seat in the front room.

The Highland Laddie, Cavendish Street

The Highland Laddie, at 38 Cavendish Street (LS3 1LY), is a century-old former Tetley's pub that was reopened in 2025 by Sam Pullan and Nicole Deighton, the pair behind the Empire Cafe. A few months later the Good Food Guide named it Britain's Best Pub in its first 100 Best Pubs list. Order a Guinness and the oysters with Scampi Fries, which sounds like a dare and tastes like genius, then stay for the keema shepherd's pie.

The Victoria, Great George Street

The Victoria & Commercial, at 28 Great George Street (LS1 3DL), behind the Town Hall, reopened in December 2025 after more than five years shut. Kirkstall Brewery and the Whitelock's team restored the Grade II-listed interiors, and it has eight handpulls and 14 keg lines. The beef shin suet pudding is the dish for a cold night.

The old city centre crowd

• The Duck & Drake, 43 Kirkgate. Original Victorian front, Timothy Taylor's Landlord and Theakston's Best, live music, and a pork pie with mushy peas and mint sauce. It is the live music pick on this list.
• The Angel Inn, Angel Inn Yard. A Samuel Smith's house off Briggate that has been a pub in some form since the 1700s, over two floors and four rooms. One of the cheapest pints in the city centre: Taddy Lager or Old Brewery Bitter.
• The Adelphi, 3 to 5 Hunslet Road. Built in 1897, all Victorian dark wood. Rotating cask and a solid Sunday lunch.
• The Lamb & Flag, 1 Church Row. By Leeds Minster, with a courtyard and the Leeds Brewery range on the bar.

Kirkstall and the river

Kirkstall is where Leeds goes for a long Sunday. Kirkstall Bridge Inn, at 12 Bridge Road (LS5 3BW), sits on the River Aire and belongs to the Kirkstall Brewery family, so order a Virtuous, a Dissolution IPA or a Three Swords and take it outside. Further into town, The Cardigan Arms at 364 Kirkstall Road is a Victorian building that Kirkstall Brewery took on in 2017, with Kirkstall beers and guests and a Sunday roast that has its own fan club.

Meanwood

The Beck & Call, on Stainbeck Road in Meanwood, used to be the True Briton, and was redone by the team behind Headrow House and Belgrave. It has a big beer garden and a children's playground, which is the only reason some of us are allowed out. Up the road, The Meanwood Tavern at 607 Meanwood Road is a sister pub to Whitelock's, built on the site of the old Becketts Arms, with cask ales, craft beer and sourdough pizza.

Headingley

Headingley pubs mean the Otley Run, which means fancy dress on Saturdays. Avoid it, or embrace it. The Skyrack on St Michael's Road has a beer garden and decent veggie options. The Three Horseshoes at 98 Otley Road is one of Headingley's oldest, all dark wood, stone flag floors and tiled walls, with Tetley's Bitter and Timothy Taylor on. The Leeds-List Headingley guide covers the full Otley Road run.

How to drink like a local

Start at Whitelock's at lunchtime, wander across to the Victoria for a second, and if you have room, finish at the Laddie on Cavendish Street. Sundays are for Kirkstall. Most of these pubs do food, but kitchens close earlier than you think, so eat by 8pm. For more picks, the Leeds-List best pubs guide is updated regularly.