Black Cat Bar, Liverpool

A concrete block house up a few steps from the road, outside seating to the right. Inside the counter is on the left towards heo back with tall seating opposite and short tables further away. Before the main bar there’s a small snug on the right with some tall seating and a cask with stools. Three horseshoes of standard and better Euro keg plus some UK standard and craft. Four handpumps lurk at the far end with averagely kept UK beers, today’s line up was Bass, plus one each from Blacklodge, Salopian and Colbier on this visit. Upstairs has more seating and above that a roof terrace with a small counter serving keg, this can also be reached from the front patio area via an outside staircase. Also upstairs are toilets upstairs marked ‘sit downs’ and ‘stand ups’. It does pizzas, big pizzas (20”). There’s an arcade games machine (Marvel VS Capcom 2) at the bottom of the stairs by the pizza kitchen.

Official site of Black Cat Bar - camra.org.uk

Official site of Black Cat Bar - camra.org.uk

This bar has recently changed hands. It is now part of the Black Cat chain. I haven't been to the Mossley Hill branch, since it was Pi, but the Smithdown Road branch always attracts a lot of students. Customers in this city centre branch don't seem to be as student-oriented. In fact, it seems that this place is trying to attract some of the city centre nightlife customers who crawl along nearby Slater Street. Open until 2am, there were a few in when we arrived between 11 and 12 but by the time we left, numbers were thinning out. So, it wouldn't surprise me if opening hours are reduced in the new year. There is a small outdoor patio to the front of the property with some steps possibly leading to a roof terrace. Inside, the bar is split over two floors. On the ground floor, there is a kitchen on the left-hand side, which dishes out pizzas during the day. The bar is just beyond, also on the left-hand side. TVs show live sporting events, especially football. Throughout our visit, there was an eclectic soundtrack which started with 70s soul and moved onto some more modern hip-hop. The upper floor feels much more cosier with bookshelves on the walls. Toilets are upstairs and are labelled "sit downs" and "stand ups". Although, I could imagine this could cause confusion for a man needing a number two! At the bar, there are 4 handpulls. 1 is reserved for Bass. I can't think of many (if any) pubs that regularly stock Bass but apparently it is a favourite of the landlord. 3 guest beers were Tartarus Cactus Cat, Tatton Christingle & Wantsum Baa Humbug. I'm not sure if the Cactus Cat is also a regular or not. There is certainly a cat theme throughout the bar. The Baa Humbug was a very enjoyable chocolate and vanilla stout. Keg beers included Lervig Tasty Juice, Colbier Cool For Cats (seemingly a rebadge of Sharp, a cranberry sour which we'd tried earlier in the evening in the Grapes)& Intermission, Chapter The Final Fardel & Nightjar The Slow Descent Into Madness. There is also a good selection of cans and bottles in fridges behind the bar. Whist I never ventured into this place under its previous guise, it sounds as if the interior is much more welcoming now and the availability of cask ales and some interesting craft beers gives it my seal of approval. As such, this is a welcome addition to the city centre drinking scene.

This is a hipster pizza joint that has been made out to look a bit like a skatepark, with tonnes of graffiti covering just about every available surface. Passing through a ramshackle outdoor seating area with limited seating, you enter a rough looking, concrete floored room with the bar along the left-hand wall and rows of long tables and stools opposite. Every table has been heavily graffitied and all of the walls have been painted jet black and covered with an impenetrable web of text from various visitors using chalk pens. The ceiling is papered with old posters of various famous bands and also sports its own fair share of graffiti. Some skateboards have been nailed to the wall in a concession to the theme and I spotted a pinball table in one corner. The servery has a corrugated iron fronted bar counter and rather plain bar back, with boards on one side listing pizza by the slice options and beer detailed across the gantry. A surprisingly chilled soul soundtrack played throughout my stay and a trip to the toilets uncovered a first floor room with some decent overspill seating and a somewhat less chaotic decorative scheme. There’s no cask on the bar – just a house pilsner, a couple of Camden beers and a few mainstream brands. I tried the pilsner, which was overpriced and underwhelming, whilst the pizza, which sounded like it would be great thanks to some adventurous flavour combinations, was a real let-down too. I think the graffiti décor theme can give a false impression of an unkempt, uncared for premises, but having spent quite a bit of time in here, we came to the conclusion that it is actually a dump which needs a good clean up, and that the lack of care taken to present the place has led to a lack of care with the pizza too. There’s nothing here for the passing drinker to get excited about and on the evidence I saw, I wouldn’t bother stopping by for food either. Date of visit – 16th July 2023