L'Olivetto Bar & Restaurant Liverpool — Restaurant in Liverpool

I've thought long and hard before posting this review; I take no pleasure from it. I'm afraid that the meal we had was by some way the worst Italian meal we have ever had. We visited on a positive recommendation from a family member. Service was slow throughout. I had the antipasto starter. There were cold meats just pulled from the packet, olives like bullets and a dry ciabatta roll. Disappointing. The menu was a little strange in that there was no risotto (I always choose this in a new restaurant as the chef needs to know what he's doing). There was a chicken escalope (I'd normally expect to see veal) which is what I chose. My wife chose salmon in a cream and paprika sauce. Her meal was tasteless although the sauteed potatoes were nice. My escalopes were overdone and the meat was dry. I confess I ate it; I hadn't eaten since lunchtime and I was hungry enough to eat the proverbial scabby cat. The escalopes were that scabby cat! It came on top of a mound of truly inedible spaghetti which tasted like it had been taken out of the tin and left in the fridge for a week uncovered. We got the bill at which point my wife complained to the waitress. She apologized and went away. No member of management came to speak to us, so we left. PS We've had no response whatsoever from the restaurant, so plainly they...

We had a wonderful lunch at L’Olivetto Liverpool — a hidden gem serving great Italian food in a very unassuming neighbourhood location.

We went in for an early lunch, so it was quite quiet, but the atmosphere was still warm and inviting. The restaurant was clean, nicely presented, and the music added to a relaxed, welcoming ambience.

We received a lovely warm welcome from the staff. We started with cocktails, which were well made and balanced. For starters, we had prawns that were cooked perfectly — fresh and full of flavour.

For mains, I had the seabass, which was a generous portion, beautifully seasoned, and cooked just right. My partner had the penne arrabbiata with chicken, which was also delicious and well seasoned. He especially enjoyed being left with as much parmesan as he liked — to his absolute delight!

Overall, we had a fantastic experience and would definitely go back. A lovely bonus: the restaurant is dog friendly, so you’re welcome to bring your little (or very large) furry friend along too.

Highly recommend if you're looking for authentic Italian food in a cosy,...

Mid range Italian. Set in a residential area, doesn't stand out unless you look for it, decided to visit on account of the good reviews. Got the sea bass with clams, a veggie pizza and the gamberoni vesuvio for a starter. The sea bass was good, surprising highlight were the potatoes and the sauce underneath. I was disappointed by the clams - 3 of the 8 were not properly cleaned and I was taking sand out of my mouth - an unpleasant feature that brought down the whole experience. The pizza was ok, somehow the olives were the crunchiest element of the whole pizza. The prawns were tasty on their own but the bread was really soggy and considering they were cooked in chilli oil and garlic there was a complete absence of heat. The service was good and quick, the place itself looking good with plenty of wood elements. Would only visit again if someone suggested specific dishes to try, wasn't blown away with the ones we...