Is this new opening the best spot in Sheffield to take a lunch break?
Few restaurants now boast a menu that can be ordered and eaten before the demands of the office call, and to be fair Lonestar on Division Street makes no such claim.
Lonestar, which has been open for five weeks and is named after a favourite holiday connection of the owners, aims to offer something different to a street already packed with plenty of places to grab a coffee.
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Hide AdIt’s open through the day and into the evening, and visitors can tuck into everything from a latte to a wine, and a pizza to a salad, whenever they fancy.
James Ryder, general manager, said: “People have been loving the atmosphere, which is very chilled and relaxed.
“They’ve been telling us how great it is they can come somewhere at night and have a coffee or a cocktail.”
Sadly cocktails were off the cards during our visit, so we settled for a pair of very good lattes instead.
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Hide AdWe had booked a table, and the drinks arrived before we’d even had chance to peruse the menu.
Service here was swift and friendly throughout from the smart staff.
What had attracted us to Lonestar was not the range of wraps and typical lunch options available, but the ‘around the world’ tapas dishes.
Sandwiches and soup can get repetitive so it was a breath of fresh air to be able to browse through small plates based on favourite flavours from as far afield as China and Spain.
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Hide AdThere’s a deal where diners can enjoy three dishes for £12.95, and so we went the whole hog with a trio apiece to share across the table.
It proved to be plenty, almost too much for the tiny table perched next to bustling Division Street. In fact, it was a good thing the baba ganoush had sold out.
The top performers were duck gyoza – perfectly presented dumpling packages with a crisply crimped top, meaty flavour and a good punch of hoisin sauce underneath to boot.
James' favourite was a plate of halloumi sticks, golden on the outside, with salty, squeaky cheese on the inside, and a spicy sauce to cut through all that fromage.
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Hide AdThe Korean classic popcorn chicken provided a welcome bit of heat in the small cubes of crispy meat, and there was more from the spicy sausage in the vast bowl of ‘prueba de chorizo’, simply potatoes and chorizo in a thick tomato sauce.
Neither of our worlds were rocked by the falafel fritters, which compared to the rest of the dishes were a little dull, but that is a lot to expect from ground chickpeas after all.
A perusal of the cake counter showed there was plenty on offer for those who need gluten free varieties, and vegetarians are well catered for throughout this menu.
We split a clementine chocolate tart, which was more like a thick mousse sat on top of a thin crust, and all the more delicious for it.
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Hide AdOn our visit staff confirmed the cakes had been bought in but James said a new member of staff was starting soon to make brownies and desserts in their kitchens soon.
Even with the post dining interview and enjoying two courses in a relaxed fashion, the chimes of Sheffield Town Hall did not ring the end of the hour until we were safely back at our desks.
Our bill came to £31.45.
Lonestar, 40-44 Division Street
Tel: 0114 553 9859