A Valentine’s Day guide to Liverpool

If you’re looking for a special Valentine’s Day treat, look no further than The Art School. This is the definition of fine dining. Chef Paul Askew is a well-known face from television cookery shows such as Saturday Kitchen and Celebrity Masterchef. Paul champions seasonal and local ingredients to ensure each dish tastes as good as it looks, so you know you’re getting nothing but love and quality when you dine here. Afternoon tea in the cellars is another draw. Gourmet sandwiches, such as roast Southport smokehouse pork with mustard mayonnaise and fresh apple on pain cereal, are served alongside a selection of beautiful desserts. YUM!

Albert’s Schenke brightens up the corner of Hanover Street, with its inviting lighting and open fire pit, this is a lovely location to sit and have a heart-to-heart with your date. Book a table for food in the Cook Haus or, if you’d rather just drink, pop in and you’ll get a table in the Bier Tavern. The Bavarian haunt offers a menu of Alpine classics such as schnitzel and sausage alongside Swiss cheese burgers and Black Forest ham, egg and chips. Meanwhile, the drinks selection revolves mainly around bier, with local craft brews, as well as those from Munich, Bohemia and further afield, making up the selection of over 20 on tap. This is a far more casual location to spend your Valentine’s Day, but it is Liverpool after all, is there such a thing as casual?!

Salt House Tapas has become a staple name in Liverpool City Centre. Opening its doors in 2010, this Spanish tapas restaurant has been welcoming customers for 23 years. This is testimony to its high-quality food, great service and beautiful interior. Mix and match from a vast selection of dishes including sauteed baby chorizo, venison meatballs and sizzling prawns. Depending on how hungry you are, three tapas dishes per person seems to be about right and this would be in the ballpark of a very reasonable £11-15. This dimly lit and cosy restaurant offers a great spot to people watch or be tucked away upstairs so you and your date can sit and enjoy the food (and the company!) in peace.

Disclaimer – do not go here if you’re afraid of heights! Panoramic 34 is Britain’s tallest restaurant, located on the 34th floor of Liverpool’s West Tower, reaching 100m above sea level. Panoramic 34 offers 360-degree views of Liverpool, the Welsh hills and on a clear day, you can even see across to Manchester. Couple the unparalleled intimate surroundings with fine cuisine. Whether you want a relaxed afternoon tea or a three-course meal, Panoramic 34 offers it all.

Delicious, authentic food, inspired by southeast Asia. Mamasan is as beautiful and elegant outside as it is inside. This stunning brasserie has Asian-styled surroundings, including twisting vines and elegant decorations which elevate your dining experience. Alongside creative cocktails, craft beers and a wonderful wine selection, the entire menu is produced from scratch including authentic Asian pastes and coconut cream made in-house! Located on College Lane, which links Peter’s Lane and Hanover Street in Liverpool ONE, makes it the perfect central location for drinks and dancing afterward.

Belzan’s intimate space creates a perfect romantic atmosphere for Valentine’s Day, making your dining experience even more special. Belzan is also extra special because its menu changes with the seasons. Some weeks nothing changes, other weeks three or four dishes might alter, which makes this a very exciting restaurant to visit as you never really know what you’re going to get! One thing’s for sure though – everything is made fresh and by hand! The wine menu is also carefully chosen based on Belzan’s ethos of serving nourishing food and drinks that are good for the planet and pair amazingly with whatever dishes are available that day.

If candle light and intimate settings are your dream for a Valentine’s meal, then Queens Wine Bar and Bistro is the place for you. Nestled down the secretive Queens Arcade, this decadent bar and bistro is like stepping down a classy French alleyway in Paris. The decor is minimalist with rustic chairs and tables, and classic French artwork on the walls offers a truly authentic Parisian cafe experience. What does romance better than pretending you’re in Paris?

If you’re looking for dinner with a view, Lunyalita is in a brilliant location, overlooking the world famous Albert Dock. This is one of the best views of Liverpool as the sun sets over the Mersey. How romantic! The food menu offers a wide range of classic and modern tapas including a huge selection of meat, seafood and veggie options ranging from £6.95 to £9.95 per dish, deli platters including the Gourmet Platter and a wide variety of paella with changing specials. There’s also an unparalleled wine list of over 100 hand-selected wines that you’re not likely to find anywhere else in Liverpool.

Described as Japanese cuisine with a Western twist, Sapporo prides itself on being an immersive Japanese experience. Not only is the food here authentic, delicious and freshly sourced, if you order a teppanyaki dish, you can sit back and enjoy the show as your food is made right in front of you. Prepared on a traditional, flaming hotplate, the chefs will combine an amazing performance with masterful trickery in order to prepare some of the most delicious Japanese dishes! This is a really special and unique dining experience to celebrate Valentine’s Day with your loved one.

Located on the very trendy Allerton Road, Luca is a small Italian small plates restaurant made with local, fresh and quality ingredients. It has exposed brickwork and comfy booths so you can cosy up close and share some delicious food on Valentine’s Day. There’s an extensive cocktail menu as well as a mocktail list to compliment the variety of veggie, vegan and meat dishes.