62 Castle Street
Liverpool, United Kingdom [view map]
Local restaurants
A short walk up Castle Street, The Olive Press (+44(0)151 227 2242) is an innocuous enough prospect, but once inside you find well-made – and even better priced – Italian cuisine, ideal for lunching on the hoof. For finer dining, Blakes (+44 (0)151 243 2121) at the kitschy, Beatles-themed Hard Day's Night Hotel on North John Street, is unexpectedly crisp and clean-lined, with a meaty Modern British menu. Combining an American-leaning menu with a sinister funhouse ambiance, the Albert Dock's Circo (+44 (0)151 709 7097) doesn't let its quirkiness get in the way of its excellent food – it's one of the few places i Liverpool where you can sink your teeth into kobe beef.
Local bars
If the Beatles-inspired cocktails ('Honey Can't Buy Me Love', 'Strawberry Fields with )Pepper') at Bar Four (+44 (0)151 236 1964) prove too cloying, head to Vinea (+44 (0)151 707 8962) on the Albert Dock, where you can crack into an excellent selection of wines, and nibble on artisan cheeses and charcuterie platters.
Nightlife
For a glimpse into the irrepressible Liverpool music scene today, take a night-time wander down Mathew Street. Although it leans unpleasantly towards the stag-and-henny at weekends, it's still one of the top spots in the city to catch local artists playing their tunes. The Cavern Club (+44 (0)151 236 1965), a reconstruction of the original subterranean venue where the Beatles first worked the crowds (not to mention Cilla Black's stint as a waitress), and still a great place to catch up-and-coming bands.
Worth getting out of bed for
The Beatles Story (+44 (0)151 709 1963) on Albert Dock is top of the tourist's tick-list, but its popularity is deserved: there's a host of intriguing trivia to be harvested in this surprisingly moving museum.