The Left Bank

1 Church Street, Wavertree, Liverpool L15.
Tel: 0151 734 5040

May 2000

This restaurant, situated opposite Penny Lane, is an old stalwart of the Liverpool dining scene. I've visited numerous times before now, and have generally found the experience to be a pleasant one. The menu is decidedly French, and is presented on an over sized laminated card which are cumbersome, particularly in view of the small and cluttered tables. There is quite an emphasis on seafood, but nobody should have any difficulty finding something that appeals to them on this menu - especially considering the large number of specials that are usually available.

The wine list is nicely laid out, but suffers from hedging of vintages, an annoying and lazy practice. There are, plenty of safe choices here, and we commenced with a glass or two of NV Champagne, followed by something from Alsace.

Perrier-Jouët Grand Brut Champagne NV: Just a brief note. Delicious and quite rich, with a fine bead and creamy mousse. A good non-vintage wine, all the better for being available by the glass. 16+/20 (May 2000)

Hugel Gewurztraminer 1998: An Alsatian Gewurztraminer should be an aromatic, floral, full-bodied wine. Pleasantly aromatic on the nose, the palate was also floral, but unfortunately far too floral for me, with a sweet, soapy, perfumed character. It also lacked body on the palate, which would have helped balance it out. 13/20 (May 2000)

To start we were to have the Salade Grande Ferme and Coquille Saint Jacques. The salad consists of leaves, tossed with Roquefort cheese, smoked bacon and garlic croutons. This was very good, but the bacon was very heavily smoked. The Coquille St Jacques consists of grilled scallops on a bed of spring greens with red pepper sauce. I was deflated when I learned that this dish was off, and reluctantly accepted a substitute of scallops in a cream sauce. This turned to be a somewhat unremarkable and disappointing combination.

For the main course we had Poulet Grille and Canard avec Parnais Puree. The chicken was tender and the portion generous. It was served with leeks (which had a delicious bite) and a tasty cream and coriander sauce. The duck was glazed and bathed in a blackberry and game sauce, which syrupy, with a caramel edge. The duck breast was quite good, although it lacked tenderness. The accompanying parsnip mash and Savoy cabbage gave a much needed element of savouriness to the meal.

Our puddings were carrot cake, which was good, and predictably boring sticky toffee chocolate pudding, which had the nerve to be dry rather than sticky.

The Left Bank didn't put on a great show on this visit, but I have had better there in the past. The staff provide an excellent service, friendly and welcoming yet also efficient, and its quite common to find the owners out front of house making sure that all is going well. Despite a touch of disappointment this time, I wouldn't shy away from returning again in the future if the opportunity should arise.

Prices: £25 per head not including wine. Good selection of wines under £20 per bottle. Champagne by the £4.50. (14/5/00)