This is not a pub or wine bar, it is just a restaurant, if you are not eating they have not time or…read morespace for you. Very rude staff, "Unless you're eating you can't sit down." we had our one drink sat outside in a cold, wet beer garden and left. As we left the empty table I had asked to sit at was still empty.

Great bar, great service. We only had drinks but the entire staff, including the owner, interacted…read morewith us. We were looking for another Beatles landmark and the entire staff tried to help and enlisted other patrons. Great place, great staff, great service.

L'Olivetto sits on an unassuming street in Mossley Hill, Liverpool. In passing you might think it…read morewas a coffee shop or the sort, but it turns out to be a real culinary jewel, and one of those rare ones... an independent Italian restaurant that does Italian food properly, and well. As you walk in, it strikes you that the space is larger than it looks from outside, with slate floors and tables in similar tones with simple wooden furniture, but the restaurant is dominated on one side by the giant ornate wooden bar, which takes the centre stage. The rest of the restaurant is decorated in shades of olive (a natural choice, with "L'Olivetto" translating to "The Olive Grove"), but is rather minimalist, meaning that it can feel a little stark. I think if the tables had simple white tablecloths, or if there were some curtains or plants, it would make the venue feel a bit more cosy, and would absorb the echo a little bit. Not to say that it's not pleasantly decorated, with some fab quirky decorating features! The bar also had some great little additions that you might not think about. There is a glass containing reading glasses, for those who inevitably forget to bring theirs and have to squint at the menu, as well as two variations of a loyalty card, one for the daytime crowd, promising free coffee and cake, and the other for the evening crowd, offering a free bottle of house wine. A nice touch! The menu is split into several options, including a lighter meals section, set meals, and general a la carte. The tables also have promotions on them, mentioning how each night there is some variation of a special offer, such as 20% off on tuesdays, and a half price bottle of prosecco with your meal on "Fizzy Fridays". The prices generally are very good too, considering everything is made fresh to order. We chose to start with Funghi Impanali, breaded mushrooms which gave a good crunch before giving in to some incredibly tasty and juicy mushrooms that had been sauteed in garlic butter. When somewhere can take something as simple as breaded garlic mushrooms and make it truly tasty and impressive, that's a good sign! For our mains, I chose the Pollo Saltimbocca from the light lunch menu, which comprised of chicken fillets wrapped in parma ham sautéed with olive oil, garlic and sage. I accompanied this with a couple of side dishes of Patate Saltate, which is potatoes sauteed with onions, garlic and parsley but which visually was a bowl of absolutely mouth watering looking little roast potatoes! They were crunch and delicious and very moreish! I could eat a whole bowl of them for a snack! I also had the spinach tossed with onion, garlic and parmesan, My main and sides were delicious, and I was really impressed with both the taste and the price. Phil R opted for the classic Spaghetti Carbonara; spagetti with diced pancetta in a rich cream sauce with parmesan, he was also given the option to add additional chicken to the dish, which he did gladly. For his side, he chose to try the zucchini fries, which came with a garlic aioli for dipping, and which were unsual but pretty tasty! We'd seen them appearing a lot in trendy restaurants, so it seemed a perfect opportunity to give them a try (try them, seriously!). Phil R was completely taken aback by the quality and flavours of his pasta, and was singing its praises and making happy noises throughout. We've been to Rome and Pisa and eaten *actual* Italian food, and he didn't sound as impressed then as he did by this meal! Well done, L'Olivetto! We were given dessert menus, but had already been sneakily noseying at the cake chiller cabinet in the corner of the restaurant, and had made up our minds already! I chose to go for the cherry crumble, served cold, with cream, and Phil R chose to go for the triple chocolate gateaux. We were both smitten with our choices, which were delicious and great quality. We were told they were from an actual nearby Italian bakery, keeping the Italian flavours going throughout. Some of the desserts were prepared freshly in house too... we'll try them next time! The service was friendly and professional, the food was absolutely superb and of a great quality and value, and the venue was bright, modern, and spotlessly clean. It was also nice at the end of my meal to see that they had a selection of teas available, so I had an Earl Grey to round it all off. Perfect. If you're near Liverpool, go along and give them a try, they're really worth it. We decided that we'd be happy enough to drive over there from Bolton if we fancied a nice meal and experience, because that's one thing they really delivered. Bravissimo, L'Olivetto!

In my experience coming here I found the place anything but Mello but it has been open now for…read moreseveral years and seems to attract a big crowd especially when taking advatage of its big open terrace/patio windows in the sunshine. The place itself is bland as hell, nothing interesting or inspiring about the look of the place and this is probably because it doesn't really know what it wants to be. A bistro with tapas? Tapas just seems to be the default setting of any restaurant keen to make a quick buck. The thing that got me however was the service. It was slow, the bartender/waiter was in no rush to put my order through - he apologised later but I think he completely forgot to tell the chef!

Mello is situated in the slightly quieter end of Allerton Road, so you don't expect it to be that…read morebusy, however it can be quite lively some nights and retains a loyal following of locals. Its claim to be a wine bar AND bistro though is something that has never sat well with me. As a restaurant, it is very successful, and boasts breakfast, lunch and evening menus in addition to a tapas menu. The food is lovely and reasonably priced, and the service is good - everything you'd expect from a small restaurant. However, on a busy night, Mello occasionally falls a little short. Staff are torn between serving behind the bar or serving the food, and if there are large parties eating in the 'bistro area' and drinking in the bar area, it can become crowded and sometimes uncomfortable, with the local drunk perving down the top of the local Tesco's manager who's trying to enjoy a staff party. All this aside, it is a pleasant venue, with varied music, patrons and food. Somewhere to go for a quiet lunch or mid-afternoon snack, or a good old knees-up and spy-on-the-locals type night!

The Fulwood has been going strong now for almost 3 years and seems to have found its niche in this…read moreeasily overlooked stretch of Aigburth Rd. Its the little sister to the highly successful Amber Wine Bar and Bistro on Rose Lane and has taken the idea of European decadence to an obvious night time flavour. The pub is quite dark, decked out in black upholstery, dark wood and rich red curtains with a Victorian cabaret style in mind. It can be very quiet here during the afternoon and early weeknights but Thurs, Fri, Sat evenings and Sunday afternoons can be pretty rocking with a great jukebox that is updated regularly and live music a regular occurrence with the website providing info on all up and coming events. Its only downside is the location, as there is nothing else around the Fulwood to attract you here if you're the type who likes to move between bars but they have gathered their own selection of loyal regulars from the surrounding area.

I only discovered the Fulwood Arms yesterday, however I wish I'd found it earlier this year! It's a…read morefive minute walk from my house and it's a fantastic place for a chilled out pint after work or in the afternoon! It's also one of the only pubs in Liverpool that still has a jukebox, which apparently vends free on a Wednesday evening! The jukebox has about 100 albums on it and they are all classics! They serve a great range of draught beers and the pint of Fosters that I had was one of the best pints I'd had in a long time! The prices are fairly cheap and the atmosphere is great, very chilled and studenty. There is free wifi access and they show a lot of football games. They do student offer and special offers when the football is on for groups of people wanting pitchers of beer.

I came here by myself because I was away with work. The atmosphere inside was lovely and relaxing,…read morethe staff were superbly friendly (perhaps recognising that I was alone) and the food was great. I had 4 tapas dishes and a lovely pint of estrella for only £23. Perhaps my only criticism would be that you can't have the paella for just one person - but the staff took time to explain why this was and offered alternatives.

The place was closed and there were builders working. Either it's having a huge restoration or the…read moreplace went bust. Didn't say anywhere.

Pod is a tapas style Spanish restaurant along Allerton Road, and doesn't seem to be quite as…read morepopular as it used to be. The usual clientele are students or young professionals as the restaurant is the unique idea of the Liverpool Hope University's graduates. The decor is oretty simple, not plain, but simple which is a nice idea as it creates a really airy and open atmosphere, the only problem is the dodgy seats... you just can't get comfy. The food is pretty good, but not as good as my little La Tasca... similar style tapas but it just doesn't have the romanticism about it. I'd recommend the Lebanese chicken - it's pretty yum.

Pod has been about a lot longer than the other wannabe bistros on Allerton Road, and therefore has…read morea string of die-hard fans. Serving tapas-style food, it is simple and snacky and quite a nice place to relax, if only the damn chairs weren't so uncomfortable! I've not seen it full in a long time, and I can't understand why, as you would struggle to fault the food, bar or service. Perhaps with the clinical squarish wood tables and chairs and open spaces it struggles to lack atmosphere. But then again, it is not dissimilar to many other places on Allerton Road.

Initially, the landlord of Rhubarb intended his new venture to compliment his already successful…read moretenure of the Parkfield next door to this new Lark Lane establishment. The idea was to obviously expand the Parkfield with something the same but not quite. Just like the Parkfield, Rhubarb is a traditional British pub, decked in a dark wood interior and keeping it simple behind the bar. However after a falling out with the owners of the Parkfield site, he simply moved himself and his staff and most of his punters next door with him. The competition is only a good thing for the Lane as for too long I have bemoaned the lack of pubs along Lark Lane as it has favoured wine bars or tapas restaurants. Rhubarb is only small but that only adds to a friendly atmosphere amongst a customer base who all seem to know each other and whose conversations bounce around the place making you feel very welcome. And with plenty of screens around you can always get a good view of any sport on show - of course 9 times out of ten that might be horse racing.

Visiting on a glorious afternoon, the first thing that I noticed about Rhubarb, compared to most…read moreother establishments on Lark Lane, was how dark it was. Obviously for a British pub that ultimately means nothing, but the fact natural light made it six inches into the place before giving up the ghost made me want to reverse. Rhubarb is more suited to the night, when the surrounding Mediterranean eateries are too packed with people having dinner to enjoy as places to drink. Oh, and that's not just some weird Spaniard muttering things to you in the gents. It's a language tape. I repeatedly forget this.

Sakara Bar & Restaurant caters for us all...Unfortunately I haven't had the pleasure of dining here…read moreas of yet but a mere gander for a tipple and a sniff at what's on offer. I am here to report I will be coming back for more. The atmosphere is very relaxed and chilled out, perfect for a meal with a lady. All I have to do now is next time a date is cometh, I taketh m'lady hereith for s spot of dineage!!!!

Sakara brings something different to Liverpool diners -- a truly international 'small plate'…read morerestaurant where you're encouraged to order two or three dishes to share. The theme is broadly Middle Eastern with Egyptian artwork, sculptures and a shisha pipe but the menu ranges far and wide encompassing meat, fish and vegetarian dishes from Asia, South America, the Middle East and Mediterranean, all priced at around £3-£4.

07 Cafe Bar is a quaint, French-style cafe next to Reid's bookshop on Mount Pleasant. Pleasant it…read moreis too, inside, a lovely red door and a chirpy gold bell, furnished with polished mahogany tables and French ballet prints it has a very welcoming vibe with friendly staff and a lovely patio area at the back. I sat for an hour with coffee and a good book that I'd just picked up from next-door and it has that je ne sais quoi that really makes a difference. It was rather quiet when I arrived but the service was impeccable and they serve a range of cocktails for £4.95 if you fancy lunching with the girls. They offer French lessons every fortnight on a Wednesday at 3 levels so if you want to do something different, it's a great place to start learning a new language and only £6. They also have acoustic nights, and I imagine with a few good friends, a bottle of their best red and the lilting sounds of a good guitarist, this would be a delightful cafe bar to wile away an evening.

This place is fantastic - last time I was here I ordered a crisp greek salad and a frothy caffe…read moremacchiato and was surprised by how good both these items were. The place is abuzz with students and their visiting parents (the place is an island of sophistication located near the Liverpool University and John Moores campuses - "No Mum, of course I don't just eat kebabs!") There is a really great, friendly atmosphere to the place, the owner-managers Tony and Celine go out of their way to make diners comfortable and satisfied. The wine list is select and, apparently, impressive (not that I would know myself - I'm still struggling to get my head around the fact there are, like, three colours of wine?!) I have also heard fantastic things about the place as a for hire venue for parties - with live bands on the terrace, delicious food and drink flowing. One of my favourite little places in Liverpool. Brilliant!