Rock the Kaspa’s Leeds – review.

I was invited to Kaspa’s, a new dessert house that has opened in the centre of Leeds.
Seth is away at my parents and we’re in that fun, wind down last week of term and so I decided to take Aoife along.
I mean, who doesn’t want ice cream for tea?
Parenting win.

Kaspa’s, Leeds

Despite living a short bus ride away from the city centre I rarely venture into town. Last time I went to The Core there was nothing there. Just white walls.
Now it houses a lovely little food court and the piece de resistence of the court is most certainly Kaspa’s.

Imagine P Diddy decided to open a 50s style milk bar and you’ll find yourself with a pretty good idea of what to expect. With it’s bright pink and black colour scheme and glittery walls, Kaspa’s is certainly not understated and draws you in right away. I personally was surprised at the modern soundtrack though. Yes, I know, I’m old!

Aoife wanted to sit at one of the three ‘scooter seats’ at the front of the diner. Despite them looking very cool, I didn’t fancy perching on them for any length of time.

 

We were seated in a booth and given a vast menu to peruse.
Honestly, there was more choice than you could shake a stick at;
Sundaes, crepes, waffles, shakes, cakes, bubble drinks, smoothies and gelato.

Despite doing my usual trick of checking the menu out for the whole week prior to our visit, I was still no clearer as to what I wanted.

Aoife chose first, she was going to have the Birthday Extravaganza – 15 scoops of ice cream on a bed of waffles with sprinkles and syrups.
Hmmmm nice try but NO.

Instead she opted for the Caramel Crunch – scoops of butterscotch and vanilla pod ice cream with whipped cream, caramel sauce and crushed digestives.  She managed to get the very nice man serving to put some sprinkles on the top too. I’m sure must have been the biggest sundae on the menu, her eyes nearly fell out when she saw it. A six year old with permission to eat an ice cream sundae for tea is a delight to see.
There was a little too much whipped cream on the sundae for her so we had to scoop some off but she gave the rest a good go. We had to cut her off in the end, we could see she’d eaten enough but she was reluctant to give up!

 

 

 

After a LOT of deliberation I chose the Coffee Bean sundae – cappuccino ice cream, Dulce de leche ice cream, whipped cream and a coffee syrup. I really like coffee ice cream and it’s quite hard to find one. Kaspa’s cappuccino ice cream was lovely, I made the schoolboy error of working in a directly downward motion though. This meant by the time I’d got to the Dulce de Leche ice cream I was too full to eat it! I had a taste and it was gorgeous. Next time I’ll go in at an angle.

Ice cream tactics!

 

 

 

I never choose waffles as dessert. Not because I think waffles only come in potato but because I’ve NEVER had a good one. I’ve always found them dry and heavy.
This wasn’t the case with the Peanut Butter Choc waffle that Rory chose (I tasted for an honest review, the things I do eh?). The waffle was MASSIVE, smothered with peanut butter, sliced banana and covered with chocolate/hazelnut sauce. As if that wasn’t enough, it came with a side of vanilla ice cream too!
The waffle lovely, crispy on the outside and light inside and the toppings were more than generous! Rory was beaten by the waffle but he said it was really tasty.

Kaspa’s Leeds – What we thought

The ice cream is quality and there is an abundance of choice, not just of ice cream but of cakes, toppings, shakes and smoothies.

Rory and I both had a really good cup of coffee but I could see very few drink options for Aoife.
I didn’t want to get her a shake because that alongside a sundae seemed a little excessive for a six year old.
You know how it is as a parent, you give them ice cream for tea and so want a ‘healthier’ drink to go alongside.
The smoothies were a bit big and she doesn’t drink fizzy drinks or hot drinks.

The choice of fresh juice or water would be good for the smaller guests.
A children’Kass range of sundaes would be nice too, with an average price of £6 per sundae, it feels like a lot to pay knowing they probably won’t eat it all.

Kaspa’s may well just be aiming at more of an adult market, in which case, they’re all over it.

The diner is set out in such a way that despite being able to fit a lot of people in, you’re not all on top of each other. The staff who dealt with us were impeccable. They were polite and efficient and nothing seemed like too much bother.

I would certainly visit again, I need to try the crepes, the shakes and the cakes.
All for research of course….

You can find a Kaspa’s near you here .

 

We were invited to enjoy dessert at Kaspa’s in return for a review. All opinions are my own, as always.