Yolo Ponteland serve up their Sunday Best to Michael Grahamslaw and family.
Since opening in 2015, You Only Live Once (often abbreviated to YOLO as per millennial parlance) has added sparkle to the Ponteland circuit, boasting a stylish food & drink offering to satisfy its swanky suburbanite clientele and spawning a sister venue on High Bridge Newcastle in the process. Its eclectic menu comprises a number of small plates, sandwiches, wraps, pizzas, burgers and main plates, all presented with flair and served against a lively, upmarket backdrop. Yolo Ponteland also extends its offering to Sunday Lunch which I had the pleasure of sampling on a real scorcher of a summer’s day. The restaurant offers a sun soaked drinking terrace at the front and a bright and airy interior where we settled down for what would be a fantastic example of the Great British tradition. The dining area is underpinned by a lovely leisurely vibe and is the perfect place to unwind after a week of work. In addition to the food, another YOLO speciality is their show stopping cocktails so the girls enjoyed a couple of Pornstar Martini’s whilst Jack and I cracked open an excellent, crisp Sauvingnon Blanc. Yolo’s Sunday Lunch menu offers plenty of choice, embracing international flavours as well as a “Hearty Sunday Roasts” section. In line with this, we kicked off with a globe-trotting selection of starters. I chose the sticky popcorn chicken on a bed of lettuce whilst my son Jack enjoyed the panko king prawns, enlivened by lemon juice and shards of fresh chilli. The Girls meanwhile kept things strong and simple with the pomodoro potato skins and a pyramid of vegetable spring rolls. Throughout our meal, the service was some of the best we’ve encountered in a long time with the team eager to ‘check back’ everything was to our liking whilst replenishing our glasses. Following up, we chose four sumptuous Sunday roasts – two chicken breasts and two beef tenderloin – all served with golden roast potatoes, stuffing, seasonal vegetables and lashings of gravy – not to mention a freshly homebaked Yorkshire pudding. All of our meat was exquisite, Holly’s cooked to her preferred medium well whilst Jack’s to the perfect pink. The quirky Nutella Chocolate Calzone and everreliable Sticky Toffee Pudding proved the perfect ways to finish and were savoured over some freshly brewed coffees. Totally replete, we headed home after a meal from a venue which thrives seven days a week – clearly serving up a Sunday Lunch befitting of its Monday to Saturday excellence. You only live once, so why not try it?