I NEVER imagined I’d be having dinner with a metallic fairy. She was sitting among some cupcakes with a painting of a poppy behind her and people interwoven with each other on the windowsill.

The fairy was an extra guest when my friend Kate and I called for dinner at The Gallery in Heckmondwike.

The name says it all really, this bistro is also a gallery with work by local artists on show – the fairy sculpture was one of the pieces in the collection, along with the porcelain cupcakes.

The Gallery is part of the Revive complex in Croft Street, incorporating a hairdressing salon, day spa, including Turkish bath, and Cafe/Bistro.

The work of Slaithwaite artist Jane Galvin is currently on show but the art work changes every two months. Artist Pam Lonsdale coordinates the pieces in the collection and those behind The Gallery also invite local schoolchildren to display their work.

The restaurant side is not a massive place, it’s a modern dining area with stylish lighting, artwork on the walls and sculptures dotted around.

You can even have a glass of wine in a Turkish bath upstairs before dinner, but Kate and I stuck with the food.

There’s a daytime menu with the usual cafe offerings – breakfasts, sandwiches, baked potatoes and paninis, they also do an Afternoon Tea special too with dainty crockery, sandwiches and cakes.

But we went for the evening menu which is split in three sections – grill, tapas and the specials board.

I’d phoned ahead and booked and had already looked at the menu online. As a vegetarian, I wasn’t going to try the grill section, but knew Kate would. I love tapas-style food, but seeing the specials board threw my pre-made decision into the mix – that night they had vegetable stew along with a few meat options including grilled fish and lasagne. Staff told me they update the specials board depending on what seasonal produce they get in.

However, I stuck with my tapas decision and went for Aceitunas – olives marinated in olive oil, garlic, chilli and feta cheese (£3.50) and Humus Y Pan De Pita – hummus and pitta bread (£3). I also chose the Escalivada, a medley of stewed vegetables (£3.75) and Patatas Asadas, roasted baby new potatoes flavoured with rosemary and garlic. But there were plenty of meat and fish options to suit every tapas taste.

Kate had a choice of steaks – as well as tuna steak and chicken breast, but she went for the 8oz Sirloin steak, cooked well done with mushrooms, chips and salad garnish (£10.95).

It took a while for our mains to arrive, the tapas arriving in true-Spanish style, as it was ready, which is how it should be too. Kate and I tucked into the pitta and hummus and both agreed it was good.