On a recent visit to the theatre and a couple of birthdays within our group we decided to book a table for a meal prior to the show and decided that Bistro Jacques would be the place.
Bistro Jacques is a French restaurant which is situated on Hardman Street in Liverpool right in the heart of theatre land and some of our party had been there before and it came highly recommended. Arriving at the Bistro you may feel disappointed at the external appearance of the building, it looks like a couple of shops have been refurbished and knocked together to form the restaurant and has nothing fancy at all, in fact there are those metal shutters that pull down over shop windows for security once the restaurant is closed.
The main entrance looks more like a shop door but once inside you are greeted immediately, reservation checked and we where taken directly to our table as it was ready. The tables and chairs are all rustic wood style and does give the restaurant a nice cosy uniformed feel, the décor is welcoming with cream walls that are covered in lots of French prints and scripted writing on the walls also, not too much just one or two lines of writing around the pictures which really adds to the French Bistro feel. The floor is also wooden
but not so polished that you would slip on shoes with no grip on them.
We had an early booking for our meal, 5 pm as we where off the theatre that evening, having such an early booking we could take advantage of the Theatre menu that is available at a set price of £10.95 per person. For this you get a three course meal with a good choice available for each course.
For our visit we had a good choice of starter, Soup of day, sweet potato & chilli was on offer and I opted for this and have to say I would re-order this anytime as it was extremely delicious, a lovely orange colour really thick and just the right amount of chilli, you knew there was chilli in it but it did not overpower the flavour of the sweet potato all topped off with soured cream. Pate, two of our party opted for this, and it looked great on the plate and I am going to say tasted great also as plates where cleared. The pate was a generous chunk and served with rustic bread and salad. Salmon & Ginger fishcake was ordered by the last member of our group and this also did not disappoint, a generous fish cake, no skimping on size because it was being served as a starter and lots of salad. A Risotto dish was also available but as none of us ordered this so I am unable to comment, however as the other three dishes where so good I don’t think anyone would be let down if they chose this.
For the main course there are more choices available on the menu than you have for the starters and you can also pick form the specials board, the specials are quote uniquely written on blackboards that are hung around the room at the top of the walls and I felt that this way of displaying information here completely felt right with the atmosphere of the place.
For the main course we had a choice of roast breast of Chicken with sage and onion stuffing in cream sauce, Fresh Cod, Duck, Steak either plain or with a sauce, though there is an additional £1.50 if sauce was required, a tagliatelle dish and the specials. Our group choose the Chicken, Duck and Cod between us. The portion size was extremely generous and presentation of the food delightful and all dishes come with a platter of seasonal vegetables, we had dauphinoise potatoes, carrots, green beans, cauliflower and beautifully caramelized red cabbage and onion with was really sweet and an excellent accompaniment to the other vegetables and meat. There was more than enough to go around the group to the point that there was just slightly too much and a few beans and carrots where left on the platter at the end. I have to say that the chicken was cooked to perfection, breast stuffed with a home made sage and onion stuffing with a subtle flavour, just enough that you had that extra flavour with the chicken but you could still savour the suculent chicken breast.
As with the specials for the main course the Deserts can be found written on a blackboard and we had a choice of Profiteroles a generous portion and declared delicious, Apple crumble & custard was not ordered by our table but we did see this being served to the next table and it just reminded me of what mum used to make when I was a child, big round dish, large portion with lashings of custard, Rum & Raisin cheesecake, Crème Bruelle and a cheese board, we where really spoiled for choice. Thankfully after are delightful start and main meal we where left to ponder of over what to opt for until we felt ready and this really sums up the whole of the service, swift and efficient when service was required but we where not rushed at all nor did we feel pressured to eat up and move on, service was always with a genuine smile as well and the waiting on staff appeared to be a relaxed and very well organized team.
There was a good choice of wines available on the wine list with prices starting around the £12.95 for a bottle, and yes its all served correctly as it should be with a taste being offered before glasses are poured to be sure that we like what we have chosen, for me this makes so much difference in how a view a restaurant of any type, personally I don’t like it when a taste is not offered and wine is just poured.
All of these dishes and are also available from the non theatre menu but you will pay slightly more if dining later in the evening after the early doors theatre special has finished. For example the same chicken dish alone is £10.95 and there is no difference in portion size so if you are feeling the pressure a bit recently go for an early doors menu whether, most restaurants have them.
Highcairs are also avialable if you have small children and Bistro Jacques will always try to accomodate your needs for you little ones.
This is one place where when visiting the theatre is always on a list of places to choose from if we are dining prior to a show but as it is very popular booking is essential always.
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