The Smugglers Cove in Liverpool

It gets very busy and although we'd booked we ended up in the bar area to eat. The service was prompt but the food wasn't as nice as it sounded on the menu.

Very busy before concert in nearby M&S Arena. Order at bar. Great bar staff. Good cocktails. Food OK rather than great. Prices fine - certainly not expensive.

Great food and Bobby looked after us very well!

Bobby was our brilliant server for our meal, he was friendly and helpful throughout the night. The hanging kebabs were delicious- we had the chicken and halloumi with rice and fries. The building was spectacular with original features and some tasteful decorative touches. Very much recommended.

Set in the stunning surrounds of The Albert Dock, The Botanist is a visual treat—rustic décor, warm lighting, and the kind of ambiance that makes you want to order everything on the menu… twice. The highlight? The hanging kebabs. Absolute showstoppers. Juicy, perfectly seasoned, and dripping in flavour (literally—watch that garlic butter drizzle like edible theatre). They’re as fun to eat as they are to photograph. Service was top-notch, especially from Bobby, who brought big smiles, solid recommendations, and just the right amount of banter. It’s the kind of service that elevates a meal into an experience—Bobby deserves a raise and a hanging kebab of his own. Now, the only misstep? The 8-ounce steak. Cooked well, but a little too fatty for the price point. At a place that nails presentation and vibe, you’d expect a leaner cut or a bit more finesse for what you're paying. That said, drinks were inventive, desserts tempting, and the views over the dock? Chef’s kiss. It’s a great spot for date night, group dinners, or just treating yourself with a side of atmosphere.

Great food excellent and professional service from Libby. Thank you very much

Lovely food and atmosphere. Served by Libby ❤️

A lovely meal with brilliant friendly staff

Amazing atmosphere, beautiful building. There was live music when we were there and it was really good. They were also really sweet with making sure we were settled etc with our small child. Great food, and just so good. Would definitely come again

Relaxed atmosphere. The service and the food was great. Thanks to Libby 😊

Hanging kebabs and a beer before a concert at the arena, very nice

Went for bottomless brunch and we had Tilly serving us. There were loads of us and Tilly was amazing. Food was lovely I got the vegan burger one of the best I’ve had. Thanks to Tilly drinks were flowing we didn’t ever have an empty glass. Great selection of drinks on the bottomless brunch the cocktails were yummy. Enjoyed it so much I’m back again on sat.

Fantastic place, great food and service and prices, superb location definitely be back again ✌️

Excellent place to eat, great food and atmosphere, right you the docks, Lovely

Food was great. The bartender Scott was very friendly and accommodating. We will be back.

Amazing experience. Scott at the bar was amazing and extremely helpful!

Six of us had a meal which was very good. I had roast beef and yorkshire pudding followed by raspberry cheesecake. Tara, our waitress was friendly and very efficient .

Fantastic evening in a perfect dining location to celebrate a birthday. Exceptional service from Tara, who was friendly, attentive and made us feel very welcome. Thank you Tara. Will definitely be recommending to others.

Gorgeous place. We went for Mothers Day and had the full roast dinner with all the trimmings. Our server Bobby was a lovely man and was happy to chat to us. He holds down two jobs and doesn't drive. Commutes by bus while also going to college to study photography. With his dream of being a wedding photographer. Keep working hard and we wish you every success for the future. Bobby - you definitely get our vote. X

15 of us out for a family meal, food was fantastic and the service was great. Will definitely be back in the future!

My server Bobby was so attentive and made sure everything was perfect for my birthday meal. He made my day!

Had a really good time, our server bobby was very welcoming and friendly !!

The food was amazing and the atmosphere was lovely, our server bobby was so nice went above and beyond to make sure we enjoyed our time there. Will be visiting again soon. Thank you bobby!!!

Can not have had a better day. 1st time but not the last,honestly great great experience. Big shout to Tara,couldn’t have done enough. Can’t wait to be back. By the way…thanks for getting our bag👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

We had a family gathering for our sons 40th birthday today, and we had a fabulous time. The food was lovely, atmosphere was relaxed and we were looked after really well. A big thank you to Owen who looked after us, who was so pleasant. We will certainly be back again. Thanks again . Would like to add that one of my sons lost his bank card, and it was handed in at the bar. How great is that! Thank you.

Scott was amazing behind the bar and made amazing cocktails

Excellent service from Owen! Gorgeous food and drinks

The food and atmosphere is amazing. Owen was so lovely and looked after us really well.

We had a great time having bottomless brunch! Food and drinks were fab. Our server Owen was a gentleman and was on hand for our meal and requests. Very efficient and professional.

We came here to celebrate my nans 90th birthday our server was bandna she was amazing the whole of the 2 hours very friendly and helpful food and drinks were lovely

Excellent food lovely location and great service from Libby

Amazing food and the staff are wonderful and can't do enough for you. We love it here and been here twice now and can't fault anything. AMAZING!!👏

It was absolutely brilliant, came for food with my friends. The waiter Joe was brilliant accommodating me and all my friends, even after one of them hit on him for being a slightly above average rower with a dodgy moustache.

Nice place, good meal, good atmosphere

Super Sunday lunch with friends to celebrate a birthday weekend. Atmosphere was lovely and food was really good. The stand out for the whole dinner was the service - such a friendly, attentive and helpful team, and dedicated to working hard. Their work rate was exceptional and all delivered with a smile - especial mentions to Tara who was our host, and Owen, personally want to say thank you for making our lunch such a nice experience. I was really impressed and think the company should be proud to have such employees.

Food,service great restaurant was so cold it made our visit unpleasant, pity because our Lincoln visit was excellent

Came in here for a meal on a hen do. The food was nice. The waiter Sam was also very nice and friendly. It's colder around the docks so would be a nice location in the summer. If not bring a jacket

Really nice food and lovely location! Owen was our waiter and super friendly and helpful!!

I went in the other week with my wife for a drink and got served by bartender joe, he was very helpful, friendly and professional. Overall a very enjoyable experience

Great restaurant with a good selection of food. Special thanks to Tilly for her amazing service and for looking after us so well.

The experience was good. The drinks overpriced. We tried to order stable bar drinks (martini and Manhattan) and they were lost. We were charged by the spirit which was significantly more expensive than normal drinks. The service was disorganized but eager to help as we were asked 3 times if we had been served.

Great meal. Tasty kebabs and burgers. Lovely atmosphere. Friendly service from Stan . Will definitely return! Thank you.

Visited for my son's 21st . I'd also called the day before to check they knew it was his birthday. Sadly my food was awful, dry and overcooked. No acknowledgement of my son's birthday. Perhaps it's something you don't do ? Wouldn't visit again due to the food not being great.

Visited for a birthday, we had not specified anything on our booking but received the nicest table, a window facing the water. Our waitress Tara was brilliant, she promptly came to our table, and happily took our order providing recommendations. The food came quickly and all staff went above and beyond to assist considering the restaurant was busy and there seemed to be a sparse number of staff on the floor. Food was stunning. The highlight was a birthday cake on the house, which surprised us as we only mentioned in passing to Tara. We had a lovely evening!

Had great service from Bobby for our Anniversary meal, enjoyed it as the Botanist although not much has changed from when it was smugglers cove, perhaps a few pants and lights a little brighter

Me and my daughter came here. Absolutely lovely inside...decided just to go for small plates and can honestly say the food was gorgeous. So many flavours..... If we could have eaten more we would have 😋😂 but couldn't even manage a dessert. Definitely coming back soon....especially nice on warm sunny days with the views. Just to add....we were mostly served by the most lovely girl...think she was called Libby. Service is everything !!...and we left happy 😊

Food was okay, nothing special. Staff were not attentive and seemed miserable. Not much to say. Toilets were odd and didn’t look a whole lot like the pictures tbh

Charming amazing dishes and lovely evening

I went to Albert Dock for Sunday lunch, the decor was very much in theme with the setting. The food and service was fabulous, would highly recommend 👌

The staff are super friendly and made the experience very nice but the food really let the meal down. We got the beef roast dinner which wasn’t warm and the amount of gravy was poor. We also got a side of pigs in blankets which were really undercooked. We would go back just not for the roast

Great atmosphere, lovely place. Waited a little long to be served for drinks, but definitely worth a visit

Beautiful bar on the docks. Very quirky. Expensive drinks but worth having one as the place os stunning inside

Brilliant meal all the food was really tasty, crispy duck and sides

Don’t go here. Absolutely terrible service, waiting staff just stood around chatting instead of actually waiting on tables, which should be a priority as this place is known for cocktails. They got our drinks order completely wrong twice, as I’m giving us stuff we didn’t order instead of stuff we did order. It’s like they would just get back to the kitchen and guess what we said

Amazing atmosphere and the food was lovely very friendly staff

Went in for a cocktail Mai Tai. Very well present if a touch strong and too much ice.

Pork belly hanging kebab. Difficult to cut through the meat. Wasn’t freshly prepared. Meat dry and chewy. Do not recommend. Won’t be coming back.

Limited menu but nice surroundings

Great place. Guinness is good too. Would definitely recommend

Food was tasty but pricey with small portions . Staff were very thin on the ground and the place was absolutely freeeeeezing. The 2 stars are solely for the waitress who was very nice.

Amazing food, service and the table we where at had such a nice touch.

Average food, slow service and seemed expensive for what was on offer. We've been to other Botanist restaurants (presumably, it's a chain) that were much better than this one.

I book a table yesterday for a celebration. However I have to leave as I was ignored for the staff for more than 20 minutes.

Visited 23/12/24 for Christmas menu. Highly enjoyed the turkey hanging kebab. Would recommend this restaurant.

Perfect, me and my fiancée had a celebration meal here after I had proposed. The staff were excellent and made it feel special with balloons and prosecco. Thank you!

We visited for a Christmas work do. Really disappointed. The festive menu was mediocre and we were incredibly rushed. One of our party was delayed due to match day traffic so there was a delay with ordering, but I think 1:30 hrs is rushed for a 3 course meal. Mains came out with starters and were dry and luke warm. Server had a poor attitude. Won’t be returning.

The English Breakfast was the worst I have had in Liverpool. To add insult to injury, by way of an apology, they gave us a NHS discount, which we would have been entitled to anyway.

Lovely restaurant in Albert docks. Decor is cosy, staff are friendly and welcoming. Tara who served us was great, so smiley and pleasant. All the staff we encountered were nice. Service is fantastic, the staff care about the customers and the food is delicious. Dog friendly throughout too which is perfect for us. Would return here and can definitely recommend.

Good food, lots of wine and 2 good singers singing

Good service, decent cocktails but massively let down by the food. Bland, warm and lacking substance… like kissing someone you’ve fancied for ages and they can’t kiss.

The Botanist at the Albert Dock in Liverpool is a beautifully designed restaurant and bar, known for its botanical-themed decor, charming ambiance, and a warm, inviting atmosphere. Located in the historic Britannia Pavilion, the venue combines industrial elements from the Albert Dock’s maritime heritage with lush greenery, twinkling lights, and rustic wooden furnishings, creating a cozy yet vibrant environment. The Botanist offers a unique dining and drinking experience, featuring a menu that celebrates fresh, flavorful dishes inspired by traditional British and global cuisine. Signature dishes include hearty meat and veggie kebabs, flavorful pies, and an array of small plates perfect for sharing. Additionally, The Botanist is renowned for its creative cocktails and botanical-inspired drinks, crafted with fresh herbs and a variety of spirits—each drink beautifully presented and full of flavor. The staff at The Botanist are friendly and attentive, enhancing the experience with knowledgeable recommendations and top-notch service. With views of the scenic Albert Dock outside and live music often adding to the ambiance, it’s a memorable spot to relax and enjoy a meal or drinks. The combination of its gorgeous setting and lively atmosphere made it a wonderful place for you and your wife to enjoy together.

Wanted to Book the Flourist for My Birthday Meal however shocked to find out the Flourist was closing down on the Liverpool Echo, so decided to book the Botanist it’s sister restaurant in Liverpool Albert Dock and was absolutely A Great decision to end up their with the exceptional Food on the menu. Had a Great Birthday Meal with My Fiancé & Family was absolutely lovely food was delicious massive portions, staff where lovely attentive to detail & Food & service was fast & absolutely Brilliant will be back again definitely with the Fiancé & family, 5 Star ⭐️ LGBTQ+ 🏳️‍🌈 Friendly + Wheelchair accessible entrance, facilities, Toilets & carpark.

Lovely evening whilst visiting Liverpool. Beautiful food and great service! Thank you Bandna for your excellent service. You were very attentive and went above and beyond for our evening. Highlight recommend. Thank you again Bandna.

Had a fantastic Sunday roast at The Botanist – the roast beef was delicious, cooked to perfection, and the trimmings were spot on. We followed a wine recommendation that paired perfectly with the meal. Our server, Tara, was outstanding – friendly, attentive, and made the experience even better. Highly recommend!

I had a lovely meal celebrating. The live music added a wonderful touch to our time spent here. The food was fabulous, I will be returning for the salt and pepper pork belly hanging kebab, especially with the additional pitta bread side. Amazing speedy service from Alejandro and Tara who were very friendly, even though the restaurant was busy and we were a large group.

Had a lovely time! We had bottomless, Tilly was soo great and helpful and we got plenty of drinks in because of her. Amazing time! :)

Tilly was lovely and made our experience so nice would definitely recommend coming here for the lovely atmosphere with your family or friends

Went to the Botanist last night. The food and drinks were delicious. Great service too! Will defo be back!

What can I say. Its like every botantist, good food, great cocktails, a nice atmosphere. Good live music on in the background.

Lovely location, venue is well decorated in the theme of the restaurant. Food was delicious, they have a wide range of wonderful cocktails

Busy and great atmosphere, food was great , service was very attentive and we were well looked after would highly recommend

Absolute tourist trap, overpriced for the quality and the food was luke warm when it arrived. £7 for a pint of larger and £19 for 6 king prawns and some rice. Just another chain restaurant capitalising on a historic landmark. There was only two of us, but they still added a 10% service charge to the bill, after we gave feedback about the food 🤦 I've eaten in restaurants all over the city, and you'd be better off eating else where. Eat Liverpool independent, you get service, value and quality for your money.

Nice food and drinks, very nice staff and a great place to enjoy the views👍

Disappointed from service…. Horrible dirty tables outside, ended up leaving because the staff didn’t clean the table… deffo wont go there again….

Great food, atmosphere, and service. Highly recommended.

Utterly delicious Sunday lunch! Despite ordering the kids portion the food was so enough! The vegetables were honey glazed and tasted divine! We also got the cauliflower cheese for sharing and wow!!!! So tasty!!!! Super service and wonderful atmosphere. Oh and Pinot Grigio from Australia was perfect to wash it down with. Can’t wait to try the pudding

Horrible customer service!!! We had a really bad experience today being there. At the end one of the staff members asked us to leave the table in 5-10 minutes cause they wanted the next customers to sit there. Also we asked the lady who took the order for a glass of water and she ended up bringing it long time after, meanwhile we really needed urgently some water. Very expensive place as well. Definitely not recommended!!

Great bar, well designed, well staffed with restaurant on the other side, music how ever was rather bland, chart mash and loud not sure it was appropriate for such a lovely setting.

Great service and lovely background music. Food was good. But the table salt and pepper everything you touch is sticky and unclean.

Nice bar good food. Great for hosting a business reception

Very dark and didn't get all of our orders right.

We visited on a Friday evening. Was a great atmosphere and our bartender Davide made the BEST cocktails, all 3 tasted delicious. We also got free chicken and fries as the order was accidentally put through twice, so was very much appreciated. There was also live music which was incredible. Highly recommend visiting and would come again :-) !!

We didn't have a great experience when visiting the botanist. It was my hen party to which they knew. We were initially seated but waited 20 mins just for drinks order to be taken, then another 20 minutes to be served to us. Whilst eating we asked if we could have some more drinks as nobody came over to us to check. After 20 minutes no drinks arrived. We asked about this and were told they would be with us shortly. 45 mins passed and still no drinks. On asking for the bill we asked if they could be taken off the bill to which we were told they had been. We also asked for the service charge to be removed due us having poor service and we were questioned as to why! We almost felt like we couldn't remove this. Once we had received the receipt we could see we had been charged for this! We asked for a refund and this took another 20 minutes to sort. Frankly it was not the service we expected and spoilt our experience as we were having to constantly chase for our drinks, water and then refunds for overcharging!

Just wonderful..... A little Gem in a perfect city

Amazing food and atmosphere and lovely staff

Great food and good service. We went twice on a three night stay in the area, so I think that says it all. It is busy but the food is worth the wait and they really did well with my husband's allergy and took it seriously.

Excellent meal, loved the hanging kebabs. Nice ambiance

Chicken katsu tasted like it had just been defrosted and heated up in the microwave. Stiff as a board

Nice cocktails in a lovely setting, I've not tried the food but the drinks are made to a very good standard.

Held a private event here. Super organised great venue and fantastic service. Would definatley book again!