The Excelsior, Liverpool

This is a smart, two bar pub on Dale Street with a pleasant traditional interior. The pub is bare boarded throughout with some very nice, low lincrusta wall coverings matched with a mix of plain wood panels, nice painted sections and some nautical themed wallpaper. Modern windows along two sides of the building have an etched glass-style pattern and have been fitted with heavy drapes. The rooms pop with colour thanks to attractive stained glass partitioning screens that break up the seating areas, a cool gold frieze beneath the lincrusta ceiling, and a few nice mosaic tile sections of floor here and there. Seating comes in the form of pews and chairs plus some button backed banquettes and low stools around the perimeter. The bar has a tidy, if somewhat boxy, dark wood counter which fronts a pleasant traditional bar back. The two main rooms are roughly equal in size and don’t seem to have anything that especially distinguishes one from the other, whilst a side room in a split-level space to the rear offers lots of additional seating. TV screens were showing muted coverage of a golf tournament whilst a plodding soundtrack failed to make itself heard over the modest hubbub created by a small Friday night crowd. There were four ales available when we called in - Ossett Butterfly, Thwaites Wainwright and Taylors Landlord and Boltmaker. I ordered a pint of the Butterfly from the super-friendly barman, which was in reasonable shape but probably not as good as the Boltmaker, which I would’ve ordered had I not initially mistaken it for a double-clipped Landlord. This is a decent enough pub that has a pretty good interior and a few solid ale options, but its location on the excellent Dale Street means that it all feels pretty average when compared to its neighbours. Some top service and comfy seating made for a pleasant visit, but it was notably quieter than a lot of other nearby pubs and would need to up its game to compete with the high standards set in this part of the city.

With a pub like the Ship & Mitre nextdoor, we often overlook the Excelsior on trips to Liverpool. However, on a recent trip to Liverpool on a Saturday and having already had our fill in the Ship & Mitre, we decided to drop by the Excelsior. For me, this was my first visit in just over 6 years. The real ale range in the Excelsior is much more mundane compared with its neighbour. However, there are still 6 real ales. Timothy Taylor Landlord is the regular beer. Guests on our recent visit were Ossett Butterley, Salopian Shropshire Gold, Rock The Boat Fab Four, Black Sheep Best Bitter & Kirkstall Three Swords. The pub always seems to be busy, especially on a matchday. This occasion was no exception. Live sports are often shown on the various TVs, which clearly makes the pub a popular destination.

GBG 2023 - with some very stiff competition in the immediate area. Friendly bar staff and a chip heavy menu was my main memory. Mrs M incredulous that I had Mac N Cheese on Chips for lunch. Next doors Ship and Mitre has a more cardiologist friendly menu. Beer was good - Kirkstall Dissolution IPA. Decor was trad pub - rooms fanning out from a central bar.

Traditional pub but with high ceilings and unexpected real fire, much needed in February, fine layout, wood floor, sripped back tables and good beer

Called into this 2019 Good Beer Guide pub but found only 3 National Brands and a Salopian beer available. Pub looked decent enough and staff friendly, but it has too many beer tourist pubs in the area to compete. Maybe selects beers for the pub regulars, and nothing wrong with that.

Very busy post-football, so difficult to get a feel of the place, but the staff were efficient and I managed to take a quick look around the two bars plus a side room. Six real ales from the total of nine handpumps on the two counters, with a range of beers in different styles, including the regular Landlord, Rev James and Robinson's Dizzy Blonde and supplemented by guests such as Hafod HE (£3.00) from across the border in Wales.