GAVIN AITCHISON takes a second chance on The Whippet Inn.

SELF-CONFIDENCE is not in short supply at The Whippet Inn.

Even before it opened in the spring, in the former Yorkshire Hussar site in North Street, its owners were boldly proclaiming what a wondrous addition it would be to York. Diners and drinkers should be grateful for its arrival, was the implication, as if we were a stagnant backwater rather than one of England’s finest beer cities and home to an enviable restaurant scene.

York could arguably do with more such bravado and undiluted ambition at times, but the problem with such self-promotion is that it creates high expectations and little customer patience. The Whippet had to come out of the boxes flying to live up to its owners’ pre-race hype – and for me, it didn’t.

On my first visit, the service seemed somewhat aloof and the beer presentation conceited – there were no pump clips and it took a Paxman-esque series of questions to find what beers were actually on. (So it’s an ale, you say? It’s quite pale? And it’s from Leeds? Is it Leeds Pale? Yes!)

Everyone I knew who had gone to the dining area in the back room raved about the service and food, particularly the 28-day or 40-day aged steaks. Review sites such as Trip Advisor are awash too with thrilled feedback. But while the bar was pleasant, it appeared secondary to the restaurant.

Well, what can I say? Things have certainly changed now.

I returned a couple of weeks ago for a few beers with a couple of friends and was hugely impressed.

I went back again, and once more it was tip-top. The service is exemplary and the beer range commanding, and if The Whippet missed a step at the start, it’s certainly running at full pace now.

The adoption of pump-clips has been an obvious improvement. The four hand-pulls on the left of the bar when I visited were adorned with the familiar regalia of some of Yorkshire’s finest beers: Bad Kitty from Brass Castle, Yorkshire Pale Ale from Roosters, Yorkshire Classic from Great Yorkshire Brewery and Mary Jane from Ilkley Brewery – and thankfully, I could see they were there as soon as I walked in.

To the right was a real novelty, a choice of three local lagers: Great Yorkshire’s Yorkshire Lager, Hop Studio’s Pilsner and Copper Dragon’s Radka, which was the best of the three for me – softer than the others but with a great flavour.

The fridge also contained impressive beers, most notably from Bad Seed Brewery, which opened in Malton in the summer.

I tried their South Pacific Pale Ale in August and found it pleasant if unremarkable, but their Saison here is exceptionally good. It’s a gently spiced, Belgian-style, farmhouse ale, with a distinctive ginger/cinnamon flavour – a commendably creative beer, especially from such a new operation.

The same brewery’s Espresso was also a winner, although too cold served straight from the fridge. The rich, roasted coffee body will emerge only if allowed to approach room temperature.

We left our bottle for a while to acclimatise but drinking slowly in The Whippet is no chore, as it’s not somewhere you rush to leave. The general structure of the old pub remains but the interior has been extensively refurbished and is a comfortable place in which to while away the evening.

The Hussar may have gone to the dogs, but rest assured – this Whippet is well worth a punt.

Twitter: @pintsofview