Dinner at Restaurant Bar and Grill Liverpool

Last week was a whirlwind of fun evenings out, in between the Amanzi launch and going out for drinks, I managed to squeeze in a trip to one of my all time favourite restaurants in Liverpool, Restaurant Bar and Grill. Situated in an elegant building on Brunswick Street, your evening at RBG feels pretty special from the moment you walk through the doors. The sweeping entrance gives a view of the elegant bar area and the kitchen beyond. The rectangular bar is flanked by the restaurant on either side, and there are huge wine racks displaying some of the many bottles on offer. There is also a spectacular domed glass ceiling above the bar and marble colonnades surrounding the room, the architecture is simply breathtaking and lends an air of the grandiose to proceedings.

At the bar, there is an amazing array of cocktails to choose from, and the bar staff are more than happy to create off-menu cocktails for you too. To me, coming through the doors of RBG always feels like walking out of Liverpool and walking straight into Manhattan. It is a place which manages to fuse an elegant restaurant with a contemporary and bustling bar, and the beautiful building gives every moment spent here a feeling of being truly special. Once comfortably ensconced at the bar, I immediately ordered my favourite cocktail, an Espresso Martini. Not everywhere gets this drink right, with the majority of places serving it either too sweet or too bitter, but RBG managed to make the perfectly balanced drink, garnished with three delicious coffee beans.  Since it was Christmas, I was able to admire the beautiful Christmas tree and garlands as I sipped my drink and relaxed in the elegant surroundings. 

After a short while, our table was ready and we were ushered through into the busy dining area which boasts semi-circular booths which are ideal for bigger groups. Since we were a party of two, we had one of the smaller tables which was equally comfortable, and afforded a great view of the restaurant floor. 

Our engaging waiter talked us through the specials on offer and we ordered more drinks as we perused the menu.  Having eaten a big lunch, we decided to skip the starters and go straight for the mains. I ordered a Caesar Salad with a side of ‘Charred Sweet Potatoes’ and my dining companion ordered the interesting sounding ‘Flattened Chicken’ with a side of fries.  The food arrived in no time and I was so impressed by the presentation of the dishes, which never disappoints at RBG. The Caesar Salad was stacked high; with crisp Romaine lettuce layered with ciabatta croutons, tender chicken and elegant Parmesan shavings. The portion was generous and it was deliciously simple. My companion was impressed with the flattened chicken, which was cooked on the grill and seasoned to perfection with a delicate mix of herbs and marinade.

When it comes to food, I am truly a savoury person rather than a sweet person, and I am often happy to wave the dessert menu away when I go out to eat, but RBG has some seriously tempting classics on offer, such as Treacle Tart, Crème Brûlée and Chocolate Fondant. I twisted my companions arm into ordering the Chocolate Fondant (without too much persuasion!)  and we ordered a latte (me) and an espresso (him) to round off the meal. The coffees arrived before the dessert and we were happily sipping them when the pièce de résistance arrived. The Chocolate Fondant was one of the most exquisite looking desserts I have ever seen, a dome of chocolate sponge garnished with an elegant chocolate stick and served with vanilla ice cream.  Suffice to say, I was rapidly revising my opinion of not wanting any! I plunged my spoon in to reveal a waterfall of rich, melting chocolate which combined with the cool ice cream was simply out of this world. The flavour of the chocolate was perfectly rich, whilst the sponge was light as a feather. I managed to work my way through half of it (maybe slightly more-cough!) before reluctantly surrendering the rest! I must also mention that the dessert contained a fabulous and innovative surprise, there was popping candy nestled within the ice cream. This added such a fun and sensory element, to what was already a perfect dish.

After all of that amazing food, we sat back and relaxed for a while longer, enjoying the buzz of conversation and laughter and the clink of plates and glasses as many satisfied diners enjoyed their meals. The whole bill was only £70 including service and we had an amazing time.

 We skipped off into the night with light hearts and very full tummies, looking up at the familiar and comforting clock face of the Liver Building to see that we had enjoyed a leisurely three hour dinner. I wish nights like those could last forever.

I hope that you are all having a Merry Christmas so far, sorry if I am slow to reply to comments, I am away in Derbyshire and I have no reliable internet!

Remember I love to read your sweet comments and I follow back my followers!

Until next time, 

Camille 

xo.