Ye Cracke, Liverpool

Not immediately obvious or enticing, set-off down a small (and quite dark at night) side street. However persevere as inside it’s a characterful, multi-roomed, old school boozer. Plays on its Lennon connection (the Dissenters mirror in the far room is very nice). Also in this room is a modernist wall mural depicting a Georgian battle of some sort. Impressive jukebox with plenty of old school Indie and 60’s classics that was being pumped with cash. Décor is sparse and a bit knocked-about in places, though as a popular student haunt (nearby Art School) perhaps that’s to be expected. A decent ale selection - five in all - and my Preston Oyster Stout was fine. Also Old Rosie cider (at least). A nice buzzing atmosphere in here and it was voted Mrs Quinno’s favourite of the entire Liverpool trip.

Located down an unlikely backstreet off Hope Street, this is an impressive and attractive multi-roomed pub. The exterior boasts some nice old tiling with signs for Bass and Boddingtons giving it a retro feel. Entering through the front door you find yourself in a very small and basic snug with a short stretch of bar and a TV in the corner showing football, which makes entering a bit awkward if the place is busy. Better then to arrive through the side door which takes you into a drinking corridor with access to several other rooms and a small serving hatch on the left hand side. The first room to the right is a fairly basic affair with pew seating and walls decorated with some dubious Beatles artwork from a local artist on the walls. A decent sized walled garden can be seen from here, although it was closed on my visit. The next room along the corridor is called the War Office, as this is supposedly where the locals would congregate to discuss the Boer War back in the day. It’s a smart little space, made to feel bigger by the large mirrors on the walls. The corridor eventually opens out into the main bar where there is a limited amount of seating in the space opposite the servery. There are some nice stained glass panels here as well as a framed ‘Don’t buy The Sun’ t-shirt from the Hillsborough Justice Campaign. At the far end of the pub is the biggest room, which has comfortable banquette seating lined along opposite sides and some interesting pieces of art on the walls. A TV screen was showing the afternoon’s Liverpool game to a mixed crowd and the atmosphere was a lot more civil than in some of the other pub’s I’d been in during the match. A large circular mirror has text and pictures on it relating to John Lennon’s first band, The Dissenters, who used to drink in the pub. This tribute was presented to the pub by the two surviving members of the band, Bill Harry and Rod Murray. Other items of note include a large decorative ‘Welcome to Ye Cracke’ sign and the obligatory pump clip display, this time along a high shelf running around the room. The whole pub is of the dark wood floors and panels variety and has a very welcoming feel to it which made me want to return again a few days later. The ale choice was from Slater’s Bitter, Liverpool Craft Evensong, Phoenix Hopsack and Mordue Five Bridges, with the last three all replaced on my return visit when I tried Phoenix Porter. The beer was in good shape and the staff were a friendly bunch, with one barman joining in our discussion about the must-visit pubs of Liverpool. I really liked the feel of this place and was glad they didn’t overplay their Lennon connection too much – something that some of the Matthew Street bars could learn from. An enjoyable couple of visits and a pub I’d be keen to return to.