The Bookbinder

Went for lunch today with Danielle at The Bookbinder on Lark Lane.

Haven't seen Danielle since we went to Warsaw which was early December last year!

We didn't really know what we wanted and Lark Lane/Sefton Park was so busy because the weather was nice. We walked right down to the bottom and The Bookbinder didn't look too busy. Upstairs was empty with just the 1 table where as downstairs was full.

I've been here a few years ago with Jo and Sarah for brunch but don't really remember it and had to look back at the old blogpost. Turns out I ordered the exact same thing but it was a lot cheaper back then..

Matcha Latte

Danielle got

Club Sandwich - Grilled chicken, streaky bacon, lettuce, tomato, fried egg, sourdough - £11

I got

Avocado Toast - Crushed avocado, poached eggs, toasted sourdough, crispy parsnip, breakfast radish, vin cotto - £11

If I realised I ordered this last time I would have got the club sandwich which Danielle ended up getting which was nice but the chicken was a bit dry. You have to order at the bar yourself which was downstairs and Danielle didn't have a good time. Service isn't great there which was the same last time. They seem to have no rush or urgency.

It is a nice place to just chill and you can play board games. I guess the good thing about ordering at the bar rather than table service is when you're done you can just sit and chill for as long as you like without having to ask for the bill and feel like they're kicking you out.

After we did a lap round the park. A nice very long overdue catch up.

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Botanico

Went to Botanico in Woolton Village for brunch this afternoon with Holly. It's only just opened - it was previously Crust then changed to Il Ristorante by Crust which didn't last long and now Botanico Brunch & Bistro, Bakery, Afternoon Tea. Still has the Italian vibe as it does woodfire pizzas and pasta from 12pm. Brunch is served all day till 5pm. They have a bakery at the back with baked goods, cakes and gelato.

The interior was great with all the plants - the new thing now. A lot of places are going for this vibe.

It was really busy and we booked for 12:15pm and was 15 minutes early. The host girl didn't know what to do - so the manger who was running around had to deal with the situation.

Holly got a Soy Cappuccino and I got a Matcha Latte. Holly said her coffee wasn't great and really bitter. My matcha didn't look great and wasn't made properly. They didn't give me a spoon to mix it and it was really bitter. I only managed to drink half of it.

On the menu they do Buttermilk Chicken & Waffles and Pancake stacks. But no other waffle option so I asked if I could get the waffles with one of the pancake toppings

Waffles with forest fruits & lemon creme fraiche - £9

The fruit was really sour and I wished I went for something savoury. It would have been better if it was American waffles and I wished I asked before ordering it!

Holly got Smashed Avocado on Sourdough - Topped with crumbled feta, toasted seeds, roasted cherry tomatoes, green salsa and added 2 poached eggs - £10

The interior was nice and the menu looks good and we want to go back for dinner but the service was awful. There was a lot of staff but most of them didn't have a clue what they were doing. Our drinks went to the table next to us. They didn't bring us the jug of water we asked for. We got our food, finished it and had our plates taken away then our waitress came over to ask if we had our food! We asked for the bill and paid on card, then as we were putting our coats on, our waitress came over to ask if we needed the card machine. The host girl was just useless was watching her as people were coming in and she just had no service and just didn't want to be there at all. She wasn't greeting people and didn't know what to do. We were early by 15 minutes but that shouldn't have thrown her off as she had the screen up with all the bookings so should have just went ok let me just check if your table was ready and she just stood there like "I don't know what to do" until the manager came over to sort the situation out.

Considering the awful service we do want to come back and try dinner - they also do afternoon tea. The food did actually come quick and hopefully given a bit of time the staff will find their feet and know what they're doing - so we hope anyway! I hope this is just new place nerves and they do find their feet as this is definitely something we've been after in Woolton village and hope it does well.

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Neighbourhood Cafe

Finally went to Neighbourhood Cafe on Woolton Road. I've been saying I need to try here for years and eventually went today for lunch with Holly. It's bigger than I thought it was and always looks busy when I go past it.

It looked full at the back and we manged to get the table right by the window.

Smoked salmon and cream cheese, topped with capers, red onion and tomato bagel - £10.95

Matcha latte - £4.50

I'm sure when I read this on the menu it said it had avocado. It actually looks crap and tasted just how it does - crap. Was really disappointed. Hardly any smoked salmon, a few salad leaves and the bagel wasn't even toasted. I've had a lot of smoked salmon bagels and they've been so much better than this. I could have made it better for less than half the price! 

Holly got Avocado toast, topped with feta, tomato, 2 poached eggs and added bacon - £9.95 + £1.75

Matcha latte with almond milk - £4.50 + 50p

Holly said her's was nice. I was really disappointed considering I've been wanting to try here for years. It's always busy so thought it was going to be good but don't think I'll be going back again. The menu online is different and I forgot to take a photo because I am convinced my bagel should have had avocado but I didn't say anything.

Haven't eaten out in a while but have been disappointed today and last weekend when I went to Il Ristorante by Crust and the roast I had at The Old School House. Hopefully whatever next on the list is a lot better!

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Three Piggies

Went out for brunch this morning at the Three Piggies on Allerton Road. We were meant to go to the Cork and Fork but it looked like it was shut so walked down to the Three Piggies. It was 10:30am and it said they were open from 10am for breakfast and the other places we walked past looked shut.

Me and Kelly turned up first and it was quite busy and the girl got our drinks quick. Then Danielle and David turned up and we just got left when they wanted to order drinks. Eventually got the girl's attention and ordered our food. She said it would be a bit of a wait. It was over 20 minutes before our food eventually came. Good job we weren't in a rush.

I got Avocado & Eggs - Smashed avocado on toast, topped with 2 poached eggs - £9.50

David got Huevos Rancheros - Corn tortillas, re-fried beans, avocado, Monterey Jack cheese, 2 fried eggs, white onion & spiced tomato salsa - £10

Danielle got 3 Piggies Breakfast - Crisp Cumbrian bacon, Lakeland pork sausages, beans, eggs, black pudding, roast tomato, sautéed mushrooms & buttered toast - £11

Kelly got Eggs Benedict - Honey roast Lakeland ham, poached eggs, Hollandaise sauce on toasted muffins - £9.50

I was debating on getting the American pancakes but heard the other table say something to the waitress about them and the girl being like they're batch made in the morning so then changed it for the eggs benedict. No idea what they were complaining about but then I decided on the avocado toast instead.

My toast was burnt and wasn't even toast it was basically still bread and my eggs weren't really runny and over done. Even if I said anything doubt I would have got my food back any quicker as they seemed to be short staffed and rushed off their feet.

We stayed for a bit and when people were coming in they were telling them they were on a reduced menu today (the lunch menu) and food would be a 45 minute wait! Basically turning people away even though it wasn't that busy at this point, so lucky we turned up early. 

It's nice in there, lots of space and nice décor just service wasn't good today.

After we did end up going to The Cork and Fork (where we took our selfie) for a drink but glad we didn't go there for food as the décor wasn't nice. David wasn't a fan of the tin tables. I only suggested there because they did waffles!

Kelly had to go at 2pm for a family party. Me, Danielle and David stayed out and ended up going to The Dog House on Penny Lane. I got in at 4:45pm.. I don't even drink or have a drink and thought we would only be out for brunch then I'd be going home and walking to the gym.. How wrong I was! I got back and was starving so didn't end up going to the gym but it was nice to catch up as we do only see David like once a year!

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Elk Bakery

For our last breakfast in Italy we went to a brunch place called Elk Bakery which Holly found on Instagram and was recommended by the hotel/villa we stayed at. It was about 20 minute walk from where we were saying.

It took me a while to order - they don't have menu's on the table you have to use the QR code to look at it on your phone then they come over to take your order. It was super busy and we got there just in time to get a table.

We both got a Matcha Cappuccino which I instantly regretted as I remembered that milk outside the UK is just not the same. No where else in the world has the same fresh cow's milk like we have! It wasn't nice but Holly's was alright as she got it with soy milk. 

Eggs California - Two poached eggs with homemade hollandaise sauce served on half toasted bagel, smoked Norwegian salmon, sliced avocado - €12,50

Avocado Toast - Three grain bread toast with sliced avocado, avocado cream, radishes, confit tomatoes and mixed seeds accompanied by vegan beet mayonnaise and microgreens - Extra fried egg - €9,50 + €1,50

Fluffy pancakes with maple syrup  and red fruit - €12,50

I couldn't decide if I wanted sweet or savoury so ended up getting savoury and we shared the pancakes. What I really wanted was a pistachio croissant or anything that had pistachio. It looked like they had a pistachio cheesecake on the counter but we didn't try it. It was the perfect Instagram brunch place. Food was just like anything else I've had back at home and the fluffy pancakes were like the soufflé pancakes we tried when we went to London last summer. 

And this is the last of the Italy travels post until the next holiday...

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The Bookbinder

Went to The Bookbinder on Lark Lane for breakfast this morning with Jo and Sarah. Very long over due catch up as I think the last time the three of us were together was at the start of the first lockdown when we went for a bike ride. Which is mad because we used to see each other every day and do stuff all the time but covid really has changed everything for everyone. I have seen them both separately but we've not really done anything properly.

We got there for 10am so it was dead just the one table with a family in there and then a few more tables while we were there both inside and outside.

When we got there was only the one girl serving then another girl turned up. Service was slow it took ages for our food to come out, we were waiting over half an hour after we ordered before it eventually came. And for some reason there was a weird mix up over our food when there shouldn't have been. 

Jo ordered the vegan breakfast with gluten free bread, then me and Sarah both ordered the avocado on toast. When the food eventually came Jo's vegan breakfast came with normal bread then they thought our avocado toast should have been gluten free and vegan but we didn't say that. So they brought Jo the gluten free bread separately. I got my avocado toast but Sarah had to wait ages for hers. I'd finished my food before Sarah's even came. Then they kept pressing the bell for service but the girls weren't serving they were too busy making drinks and it and we're sure it must have been Sarah's food because her poached eggs were well over done when she eventually got it.

I got a Matcha Latte - £3.50

Avocado Toast - Smashed avocado, poached eggs, toasted sourdough, crispy parsnips, breakfast radish vin cotto - £7.70

Jo's Full Vegan - vegan sausage, roasted mushroom, baked beans, confit tomatoes, avocado, hash brown, toasted sourdough - £10.20

This was with the normal sourdough - she got a plate of gluten free bread on the side.

Because our food took so long and the mix up they knocked 10% off our food bill which was good. It was nice in there as they have board games you can play, they do lunch, dinner and drinks later on in the day. Just the staff had no urgency which is really annoying for customers and I hate. I like a good speedy, efficient service none of this just pondering along. They just need to work on their service and it would be great.

Lark Lane was quiet but think it was still early when we left and the weather wasn't great today. Warmer than it looks but cloudy and a bit miserable for a bank holiday.

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