LOVE LANE BREWERY by Si Hall & Arthur Gold
Love Lane in Liverpool is the only brewery , bar and distillery with their own kitchen .
We called in to meet the new chef - Ali . He ’ s had a very impressive international career and very quickly it ’ s obvious he ’ s creatively restless , constantly experimenting and tweaking his own dishes and adding his twist on some all-time classics . They ’ ve created a brand new menu that is inspired by their multi award winning beers and gins . From the malt from their brewery to The Ginsmiths of Liverpool Gin used in their desserts .
Sometimes you just want a couple of beers ( and the Love Lane beer flavours are something to write home about , honestly ) and sometimes you want to feast on really hearty grub as the Autumn air wraps around us .
Our team agreed to share everything , and it was pretty much nearly everything .
We kicked off with a lovely bunch of starters - some Beer-glazed hot chicken wings with a cooling Harissa yogurt to take the heat down a notch . Followed by a couple of oven-baked sourdough flatbreads - Garlic / Rosemary , then Tomato / Basil with Rocket Pesto , alongside a Pan-roasted Halloumi / Tomato , Black Olive / Mint / Lemon olive oil salad followed by a Fattoush salad with Pomegranate Molasses flatbread . All very tasty yet simple , but trust me , there was nothing humble about those flavours .
We were interested to see what else Ali had put a taste twist on . We ’ d heard his Sourdough Pizza ’ s were a bit special ( they were not wrong ) so that ’ s what landed next : A Black Onion Seed Halloumi and Feta Pizza with Thyme and Fresh Mint . Then a lovely Spicy Pork Meatballs , Peppers , Rocket and Fresh Chilli . Boom , again all very nicely done , these were literally gone in 60 seconds , nom nom nom .
Then came the controversial show stopper - The Lamb & Pomegranate Mollasses Pizza . One of the Sefton Life Editors had a thing about Lamb - whereas it would seem that literally most people love Lamb , he doesn ’ t entertain it . At all . Ever . So when he came to reluctantly take a bite , everyone paused to watch . He looked confused for a few seconds . “ I hate Lamb , but I ... love this ”. Asking Ali if this was some kind of trick ? No , just a unique seductive combo of Cinnamon and Allspice Minced Lamb , Fresh Mint and Pomegranate Molasses , although we reckoned there were other secrets hidden in there as we scrambled for a slice before the reborn Lamb fan pushed us back and claimed half for himself !
Next up was a couple of nicely done classic Main Dishes .
Their Katsu Curry instantly ticked the box - a Grilled Chicken Breast with Ali ’ s chilli and coriander curry sauce with braised pilaf rice , just delicious .
Next is what can only be described as a perfectly done Fish & Chips . A light Beer Battered Haddock , green leaf salad , skin on fries and the obligatory Tartar Sauce . We agreed that none of us have had a decent F & C for ages , but this was right up there .
Unsurprisingly , we we ’ re getting pretty full now , and were considering a breather before ‘ maybe ’ some desserts . However , we ’ d seen a number of seriously drool inducing Burgers come out , so we opted for a bit of a predessert caveman ( sorry , caveperson ) meat feast ...
We wrangled all three between us , the first two - Beef Burger and the Grilled Spicy Chicken Burger came with gherkins / red onion / cheese / dry-aged streaky bacon and either burger sauce or jalapeno mayo ( chicken ), onion rings and skin on fries , these were huge but finger licking lovely . Next came the Halloumi and Crushed Avocado Burger with coriander harissa yogurt , very tasty yet light , again really substantial , put it this way , you won ’ t be popping to the chippy on the way home after any of these .
A touch of sweetness was needed so that meant dessert time ! A nice selection was on offer , two indulgently rich puds - Chocolate Brownie with ice cream , and the orgasmic Sticky Toffee pudding with Butterscotch sauce . The other two were super refreshing palate cleansers - Ice Cream and Sorbet Trio and the truly stunning Gin and Lemon Posset , with Rasberry Sorbet and Hobnob Crumble .
Well , we can all see why everyone loves this place , the team are very serious about what they do , focusing on quality , but it ’ s all heavily underlined with a sense of playfulness , constantly tinkering and tweaking new recipes .
Not only is it Food , Beer and Gin alchemy at it ’ s best , It ’ s a really great space across two floors , also available for private hire functions .
Highly recommended .
To find out more , visit www . lovelanebrewing . com To book call 0151 317 8215
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