The Empress On The Stray - Harrogate

Great pub with good food and hand pulled ales. Featured in the UK Good Pub Guide as one of the best pubs around. Open from midday every day till around 11.30pm. Entertainment on most Saturday nights with a general knowledge quiz on a Sunday evening. If you like music and have never been to the pub on a Tuesday night, you should add this to your things to do list as it is one of the best music quiz nights you'll ever go to.

We held my dads wake here, they promised a huge selection of food and drink and we specifically requested that the tables in the function room be put together so that the whole family could sit together and reminisce about the good times my dad had given them, as well as feel included as there was extended family we hadn't seen in a long time we were ushered upstairs away from the midday punters as if we were criminals and shoved in the function room where the tables hadn't been moved round so we had to move them ourselves and received looks of annoyance from the staff the food took ages to arrived...and when it was a disappointing mass of cold nibbles plonked on a table. staff came to take food away and never asked if we were satisfied or if we required anything extra verdict : i had to write this as it upset me to think someone else would be treated as poorly as we were

Very good Carvery and a well kept pint of Daleside.The staff are also very polite

It has been way too long without a tipple so it's about time I changed that. My laptop needs a rest too, it told me so. The impressive Empress is calling me. It's a grand building just minutes away from Christ Church and I'm pleased to say it's a real pub. Wholesome food and real cask ales. Indeed, you'll find ample casked ales and all of them are good. Nice selection of other wines and spirits adds to its appeal. If you do want some nourishment the menu is impressive with roasts sitting along side more exotic penne infused with goat's cheese. The price is more than reasonable as well. On a Sunday you can get your full on roast and a starter for under nine pounds. Now that is good value for money for a tasty fill up and little room left for pudding. As for the puddings they do have an enticing naughty board. Maybe your eyes are bigger than your stomach though. The Empress did indeed impress.