{"id":455715,"date":"2025-09-27T16:07:43","date_gmt":"2025-09-27T16:07:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/455715\/"},"modified":"2025-09-27T16:07:43","modified_gmt":"2025-09-27T16:07:43","slug":"step-aside-lark-lane-heres-where-to-head-for-a-drink-instead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/455715\/","title":{"rendered":"Step aside Lark Lane, here’s where to head for a drink instead"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lark Lane has long been a favourite for a pint, but another street north of the city is becoming a go-to destination\"StSt John’s Road in Waterloo(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)<\/p>\n

For years, Lark Lane has been the byword for drinking outside the city centre – bustling, lively, and full of character. But on the other side of Liverpool, St John\u2019s Road in Waterloo is quietly building its own reputation. With independent bars opening their doors and a crowd that mostly lives just around the corner, it\u2019s starting to feel like the region\u2019s most authentic place<\/a> for a pint.<\/p>\n

Don’t get me wrong: Lark Lane<\/a> is still great. It’s long been one of Liverpool\u2019s go-to spots for a drink, and it still has some brilliant venues that keep people coming back. But as its popularity has grown, so too has its reputation as a party destination, attracting crowds from far beyond the local area.<\/p>\n

St John\u2019s Road<\/a>, meanwhile – and its surrounding streets – feels like it\u2019s at a different stage in its journey. The bar scene is still growing here, with new places continuing to pop up, but it hasn\u2019t lost that sense of being rooted in the community. Most of the people propping up the bar or grabbing a drink on a Friday night live just a short walk away – and that gives it a unique atmosphere.<\/p>\n

With that in mind, I set out to see what makes the area around St John\u2019s Road<\/a> such a great place for a drink.<\/p>\n

The Old Tap\"TheThe Old Tap(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)<\/p>\n

Firstly, we come to cask ale pub, The Old Tap<\/a>, which sits on Crosby Road North, the road meeting the east end of St John’s Road. Opened in 2022 by Liam Riley, also behind The Belvedere in the Georgian Quarter, it\u2019s a snug little pub with a rotating choice of four cask ales, three craft taps and shelves of bottles and cans.<\/p>\n

There are tables outside for people-watching, but the real charm is inside, where the space fills quickly on weekends and the atmosphere is always buoyant.<\/p>\n

Bolina\"BolinaBolina next door to Il Capitano’s(Image: Liverpool Echo)<\/p>\n

A short walk away, Bolina – also on Crosby Road North – is hard to miss. The sister bar of Neapolitan pizza favourite Il Capitano\u2019s<\/a>, it leans fully into its “Italian disco” theme, complete with a glittering disco ball.<\/p>\n

The drinks list is spritz-heavy, alongside cocktails, wine, and the unusual Birra Alpetti, an organic lager from the Alps rarely seen in the UK. DJs and football screenings add to the mix, but it still manages to feel laid-back enough to pop into on a weeknight.<\/p>\n

The Workshop\"TheThe Workshop(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)<\/p>\n

Turn onto St John\u2019s Road proper and the first big hitter is The Workshop. Since opening in 2015, it\u2019s grown from a simple bar into a venue that pairs drinks with food and regular live music.<\/p>\n

Its corner location makes it a natural meeting point, and the menu – small plates with a good wine list – keeps people around long after the first drink.<\/p>\n

Paul’s Bar\"PaulPaul Roach, who owns Paul’s Bar on St John’s Road, Waterloo, with his son Liam, who runs the bar(Image: Colin Lane\/Liverpool Echo)<\/p>\n

Further along, just before the railway crossing, is Paul\u2019s Bar<\/a>. Paul Roach opened it three years ago with the idea of recreating the unhurried atmosphere of Spanish taverns.<\/p>\n

The d\u00e9cor is unfussy, the beer list includes Spanish staples like Alhambra, and the food runs to olives, charcuterie and little else. It works: there\u2019s an easy warmth here, heightened by the fact that Paul and his family are usually behind the bar themselves.<\/p>\n

The Volunteer Canteen\"TheThe Volunteer Canteen pub in Waterloo(Image: Dan Haygarth)<\/p>\n

A very short walk from St John’s Road takes you to The Volunteer Canteen<\/a> on East Street – “The Volly” to anyone who drinks there.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s one of those pubs where time seems to stretch, with table service, a strong line-up of real ales, and regulars who are more than happy to chat. In summer, the small terrace fills up with the sound of clinking glasses and the kind of conversation you only find in a true local.<\/p>\n

Taken together, these spots show why St John\u2019s Road feels so distinctive. It\u2019s not trying to be a rival to Lark Lane – it doesn\u2019t have to be. It\u2019s a neighbourhood drinking circuit that\u2019s still evolving, shaped by the people who live nearby rather than waves of visitors.<\/p>\n

That difference matters. And for me, it makes Waterloo the more interesting choice.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Lark Lane has long been a favourite for a pint, but another street north of the city is…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":455716,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8815],"tags":[748,393,4884,8898,179,8922,12459,16,15,14145],"class_list":{"0":"post-455715","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-liverpool","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-england","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-lark-lane","12":"tag-liverpool","13":"tag-liverpool-bars","14":"tag-sefton","15":"tag-uk","16":"tag-united-kingdom","17":"tag-waterloo"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115277125954553083","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/455715","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=455715"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/455715\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/455716"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=455715"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=455715"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=455715"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}