Following a successful five-year stint at the nearby Butchers Arms, Timothy Bilton and co have moved up the road to this new all-day venture on the site of Cragats Restaurant. The Spiced Pear is an
ambitious destination divided into three parts, with an elegant modern restaurant at its heart. ‘Locally sourced seasonal food served to the sound of great music’ is the promise, and the menu reads
well: pan-seared mackerel on toast with chorizo, broad bean cassoulet and crispy fennel salad; venison haunch and crispy shoulder with Pontefract liquorice sauce; peanut butter parfait with cherry
purée and crispy peanut tuile. The set-up also includes a vintage 1940s tearoom for brunch and afternoon tea (including a gents’ savoury version), plus a smart cosmopolitan bar with a baby grand
and a good line in cocktails. Boutique bedrooms are in the pipeline.