Leeds Seventeen, Leeds.

Stepping inside, there was no hint of our clothing being scrutinised, just smiles of greeting. I was possibly more casual than smart, but clearly passed muster. Had we been turned away that midweek evening, the sole occupants in the restaurant would have been the staff. Later, a party of women came to take a couple of other tables.

Such a dearth of diners was not what I had expected, judging by the difficulty in finding a space in the extensive car parks. Outside the restaurant entrance sat a man behind the wheel of a Fiat Punto patiently keeping an eye on the gleaming hardware lined up. It seems these were the wheels belonging to the members of a masonic lodge holding a meeting here.

The restaurant has the look of a place where the dining is intended to be taken seriously. This is not suburban twee, it is city-centre austere. Decoration is mostly by way of enlarged photos of well-known buildings in Leeds, the dcor is unfussy, in the modern style, and the tables are plain wood – looked like beach – and very chunky, with dark wood chairs. In the pre-prandial drinks area, the seating consists of large upholstered cubes in black.

The service, however, was anything but austere. The attention we received was informal, polite and friendly.

The day's Specials are chalked on a blackboard, We made our selection from the la carte menu with nine starters and 10 "mains" – a sensible size, and more reassuring than those multi-item, multi-national menus.

Our first culinary clue as to what Leeds Seventeen is about was the complimentary tomato bread, thickly sliced, with an olive oil and balsamic vinegar dip. The olive oil tasted of the bitter black olives I'd eaten straight off a tree in Spain.

Our starters were seared scallops with pea pure, crisp Parma ham with potato and mint vinaigrette, and, secondly, pigeon breast, seared oranges and roasted beetroot and pine nut salad. Did I want the pigeon pink? Yes, please. That's how it came and the flavour distinctive and powerful. The roasted beetroot was diced and sweet and made a happy combination with the salad.

As for the scallops, they were about as close to perfect as it possible to get and their arrangement around a timbale of green pea pure was attractively done. The crisp Parma ham was delivered late, but not so late that the circlet of pea pure had been broken, meaning it could still be presented across the top. The pure was no coy little thing; this was a Samurai warrior pea pure, with legs apart and arms akimbo. The delicate scallops didn't stand a chance.

We were realising by now that flavours here come off the plate full tilt, but not necessarily hand-in-hand.

It's tempting to say they're "earthy". There seemed something of the earth about the timbale of leeks with the tornados of chicken served with wild mushrooms and more of the crispy ham. These leeks had a grittiness which suggested very fine silt. For those not comfortable with grit between their teeth, it spoilt what was otherwise a

very good serving. The chicken was first class and tasted so fresh it was practically clucking.

The dish of steamed halibut with buttered cabbage and salmon gravadlax and dill sauce was successful in every department. The remarkably soft-textured halibut was succulent and flavoursome and this time the partners on this plate were not so much hand-in-hand as in a close embrace.

We finished with a hot chocolate fondant desert, served in a ramekin with pistachio ice cream. Beneath a crispy cake crust, the interior was liquid. I enjoyed the result. Espresso coffee came good and hot.

We had a bottle of Siet Sole Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2009 Chile wine for 13 which developed nicely as the meal went on.

This restaurant has aspirations, as is apparent from the rather clumsily announced dress code at its entrance. Its aspirations are not entirely met, but in terms of serving food with abundant taste it is more than competent.

Leeds Seventeen offers an early-bird menu between 5pm and 7pm – two courses for 12.95 or three for 14.95.

Lunch between noon and 2.30pm, and to 5pm on Sundays. Except for Sundays, it opens again at 5pm, closing at 9pm from Monday to Wednesday, and at 10pm from Thursday to Saturday.

Leeds Seventeen Bar, Restaurant and Suites, Nursery Lane, Alwoodley, Leeds, LS17 7HW. Tel: 0113 266 2594.