Food Review: What's Cooking Albert Dock, Liverpool

What’s Cooking sits on Liverpool’s Albert Dock, making it an obvious target for the hordes of tourists that constantly descend on the city to feed on it’s lengthy history and pop success with four roguish troubadours.

We went early in the evening on a warm and calm Sunday night, which enabled the meal beforehand to take in a stroll down the Waterfront, the perfect serenity to ease off a weekend.

That vibe was continued once we arrived. The ambience of the restaurant puts you at ease from the off, with a relaxed family friendly atmosphere permeating the instance you walk through the door.

Greeted by friendly staff, the walls were adorned with a mixture of music memorabilia and general Liverpool themed decorations, a subtle nod as opposed to the more direct capitalisation on tourism that you usually associate with the location.

The soundtrack plays it part too; whilst we were there a mix of soul and reggae rumbled gently out of the speakers, making a welcome change from the Beatles memorabilia that had stared us in the face as we walked through the arcade beforehand.

It’s clear that What’s Cooking focuses on a mixture of hearty offerings and soul food, with a selection of healthier options on offer that we frankly decided against in the good old fashioned tradition of helping you readers out. We're nice like that.

To start we plumped for the Fresh Avocado on Toast with Chorizo and Fried Egg, alongside Tender Chicken Strips. The avocado and egg combination in particular was a delight, the chorizo combining with the runny yolk perfectly.

The Strips were also top notch, the selection of dips that came with them perfect to be prodded by the fleshy morsels and scooped giddily into our mouths. It meant that we were primed to take on the mains in the best of fashions.

We opted for the Maple Hickory Salmon, the sweetness of the sauce perfectly complimenting the light fish for a sticky treat. The accompanying side dished involved  a huge bowl of sweet potato fries and honey glazed carrots, gifting a healthier counterpart to a main which was certainly erring on the lower calorie count. 

So we amended that with the second main. Dubbed Piggy Smalls, this tongue in cheek name hinted at a feast of pork, and that's exactly what it was. 

The burger sat inside a not too sweet Brioche bun, whilst bacon and shredded pork combined with more of the delightful avocado and a pepper jam to create a huge mouthful, one that had to be finished off by both guests.

It left no room whatsoever for desert, and two very satisfied customers. Luckily there was just enough of the Albert Dock left to explore as the sun drew in, allowing another walk to work some of the bulk that had deposited in our stomachs. It crowned off a great night - certainly leaving us with no choice but to endorse the restaurant.

For more info on What Cooking head to their website.

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