Peter Kavanaghs, Liverpool

Now reopened after a short period of closure for a spruce up. Exactly the same as before but its now had 100 years of dust removed and its all polished and shiny.

This is a rather eccentric Victorian pub tucked away down a quiet backstreet in Liverpool’s Georgian quarter. The entrance leads into a corridor which widens slightly past a snug on the right hand side to incorporate the servery. The bar back sets the tone for the rest of the pub, inasmuch as it is covered with all sorts of bric-a-brac, far too numerous to list here although the gas mask collection was particularly notable. The front snug has a limited amount of seating and a nice fireplace as well as all manner of musical instruments suspended from the ceiling. This room is mirrored by a second snug beyond the bar, although I didn’t have the chance to properly explore this room. Opposite the bar is a doorway to the largest room which is carpeted with some lovely, long curved high back leather banquettes. This room is decorated with loads of nice old pictures and photos, as well as a number of bicycles and an impressive collection of transistor radios which hang from the ceiling. There was also a child-sized Pinocchio-style puppet which, in the muted lighting, looked pretty sinister. A raised area at the far end of the room led to what looked like a dining area, but this space was closed on my visit. The toilets had some admirable graffiti ranging from an ongoing debate about toilet graffiti as art-form to numerous death threats to Tony Blair. Five handpulls were offering Off Beat Kooky Gold and Quirky Kiwi (£3.10), Tatton Gold, Greene King Abbot Ale and Ossett Snow Drop. I tried the Quirky Kiwi (my choice perhaps subliminally influenced by the quirky surroundings) and thought it was a nice tasting beer in good condition. As others have mentioned, this place is a bit out on a limb if you’re coming from the city centre, but I would say it is well worth making that bit of extra effort to seek out a pub like no other you will find in town.

Slightly out of the city centre, but well worth the walk to experience the famously eccentric decor (and, occasionally, clientele too). Various different seating areas, but most customers congregate around the bar. Five real ales on handpump, with guest beers such as Northern One-De-Ful Wheat in good form but quite expensive for the area at £2.95. (NB - Review dates from August 2011.)