The Imperial — Restaurant in Sefton

I visited the Imp on Saturday when the weather was gloriously sunny. My friend and I enjoyed drinks and a catch up in the garden before moving inside for food as the evening cooled.

Despite the pub being busy and with many tables reserved, we managed to find a seat without any problems.

The menu was great and had loads of choice. We decided to take advantage of the 2 courses and a drink deal for £19.75.

For my starter, I opted for the black pudding and bacon fritter with poached egg from the Small Plates menu - it was delicious. The chilli jam accompaniment really added to the dish and offset the richness of the egg and pudding.

My friend and I both went for The Ultimate burger for our mains (for fear of meal envy as it sounded so good). The brisket was particularly tasty, and the entire meal was lovely.

For dessert my friend went for the Malteaser and Caramel Sundae. She particularly enjoyed the ice cream but noted the dessert was smaller than it had been on previous visits.

Our waitress, Zoe, was absolutely lovely and a real credit to the venue. She was chatty and engaging without being over-attentive, checked we were happy with all of our courses and ensured we had all the condiments and cutlery we needed. She played a blinder given how busy service was at the time.

We can't wait to come back and try more of the...

We sat out in the beer garden, this was due to the wonderful weather we have been blessed with and pet dog with us. I went in to get some beers and was immediately greeted with a warm smile from Kamil (?) They only serve their own brand on draught beers, good value for money and taste. Kamil helped me on choosing the right ones for us. The main menu is very good plenty of vegetarian options and there is also a separate stone baked pizza menu. The staff came over several times to ask if everything was OK and collected the empties straight away. One down side was sound of music in the garden area was tinny. Maybe better quality speakers would do the trick.

Clean throughout, on site parking and wheelchair accessible. Dogs are not allowed into the building, so don't know what we are going to do in...

Updated review: Have downgraded my previous 5 star review following my visit today. We arrived for a meal on an evidently busy Sunday afternoon. I expected a wait and this was not a problem. HOWEVER - the food served was certainly below par and unacceptable. Steak and ale pie with barely cooked through pastry and gravy within the pie that was like water. It tasted like the first attempt at pie by a year 8 food tech pupil.We also ordered bread and butter and the bread was stale. I think ducks would have refused it. Extremely disappointed following previous visits and it seemed like there had been a change of chef or the place simply couldn't cope with the demand. If things don't improve on my next visit, I shall be taking my regular...