Bringing pan-Asian luxury to Sheffield with new bar and restaurant

Enter via glass doors and your eyes are met by a modern, plush black and gold interior. It has hexagonal lighting, which reminds of the suave staging and sounds of Arctic Monkey’s Tranquillity Base Hotel and Casino, which it suited very well. 

Honeycomb opened three months ago on Sheffield’s bustling Eccl;esall Road alongside some of the city’s most popular night time spots.

It was created by owners Chris Anderson and Fraser Burnand who took inspiration from places such as STK, Tattu and Menagerie in other big cities like London, Leeds and Manchester. They spotted a gap in the market for luxury pan-Asian dining and decided to bring the concept to Sheffield.  

“They set out to create something Sheffield had never seen before,” said Katie Johnson, manager.

“We’ve been pleasantly surprised by the success of the bar and restaurant – every weekend we have been extremely busy since we opened.”

The previous residents were the Three Monkeys Bar who were only open for a number of months before it closed down – the site has been home to numerous venues before. 

But since then, new owners have transformed it into an elegant hotspot for people looking for sophisticated and modern dining. 

Chris and Fraser did the majority of design themselves with the help of Chole Darker Interiors, a Sheffield-based company. 

Katie said: “It took months of visiting other bars and restaurants for inspiration and then putting ideas together with the help of friends and family. “When you look at the before and after pictures you wouldn’t believe it’s the same place.

“They are immensely proud of the transformation from the previous bar and received lots of comments saying it’s one of the best transformations some people have ever seen in Sheffield.”

Inside does not disappoint and staff were on hand immediately to welcome us in. It was also really easy to book online and we did so within a matter of clicks. 

It was surprisingly quiet for 7pm on a Friday night despite friends telling us about their previous experiences of having to book far in advance just to get in – proving it had generated a significant buzz when it opened in November.  

Katie said they expected January to be relatively quiet in comparison to their first two months but said overall the response had been fantastic.

“So far it has exceeded all expectations and the reviews, comments and support we have received from the people of Sheffield has been outstanding.”

It was not long before a waitress came with menus. She gave a helpful run through of what was on offer with recommendations for taster plates, useful information about different dishes and glasses of water for the table - which is always a welcome touch. 

The atmosphere was very classy and cool and staff made it feel relaxed and friendly yet professional. 

My vegan friend went for the vegetable and tofu spring rolls to start and the vegetable curry for main, which was described as ‘mixed vegetables baked in coconut milk with lemongrass and spices’. 

She said it would have been useful to have more information available in advance about what vegan options there were but said staff were very helpful when she contacted them. 

I chose the Thai green chicken curry, ‘a supreme of chicken cooked with coconut, green chillies and kaffir lime’, and Thai crab gyoza dumplings to start. 

One of the highlights was certainly the cocktail menu. It was one of the dreamiest selections we had seen featuring drinks such as Moon’s Digestif – amaretto, hazelnut and cream – chocolate orange espresso martini – vodka, chocolate liqueur and orange - and Dragon Fire – rum, pineapple, caramel and fire. To name a few. 

We both went for the signature Honeycomb martini which had Ketel One, candyfloss and bubblegum foam. It was as sweet and fun as it sounded.

The food came all together in satisfying portions and we greeted it with an excited ‘wow’. It was a very “Instagramable” spread presented on grey slates and served in stylish bowls. 

The Thai chicken curry was gorgeous – the chicken came in tender chunks and the rice and vegetables had a variety of fresh flavours, textures, spices and colours which made for a really delicious plate that pleased all the senses. 

The gyoza was crispy on the bottom, satisfyingly filled and went well with the brown crab aioli. 

My friend found her curry ‘delicious’ but eye-wateringly spicy. In all, her verdict on Honeycomb was that it was: “Excellent. High class and modern with lots of options for different dietary requirements.”

The dessert menu looked tantalisingly delicious with options such as spiced chocolate fondant and panacotta with ‘lashings of caramel sauce’. 

In all, the food was colourful and packed with flavour.  

In total the bill came to £58.40.