Picante

Picante opened in March and soon rocketed up the league table of Liverpool’s most flat-out fun dining destinations. It’s all about Mexican street food and brightly coloured, ice-cold cocktails, making it a must for the summer. 

You’ll find it at Cains Brewery Village, at the heart of the trailblazing Baltic Triangle neighbourhood on the south edge of the city centre, which deserves a deeper dive (and dive we shall, stay tuned).

Admittedly, we took a visit on that blazing hot day when Liverpool FC took the title, so things may have been slightly more energised than usual, but even so, this is a restaurant that runs like clockwork, where everyone – staff, diners and drinkers – are having as much fun as each other. 

And with weather like this – and a newly opened roof terrace – it’s a prime spot to just be. 

As for the food, no short measures here. The bag-o-nachos alone could feed a family of four for a week. They come topped with the lot: cheese, pickled red onion, cucumber, pomegranate seeds and a dust of that fiery Tajin seasoning. 

Speaking of family, the family sharer option – a snip at a mere £30 – includes these nachos and a whole lot more, including padron peppers and some chunky chicken wings coated with crumbled-up nachos then coated in Cholula agave butter. 

The Mexican corn ribs are a standout option – smothered with all kinds of powerful flavours and colourful, textured ingredients. 

It’s a pleasant surprise to see two vegan tacos on the menu, and the Baja Phish (nori brined oyster mushroom, with hibiscus-pickled onions, white cabbage and chipotle crema) in particular is well worth £7.95 of anyone’s money. 

But it’s the birria that takes the crown for dish of the day – it’s the staff lunchtime favourite for a reason. The shredded beef shin is soft, rich and moreish, even before dipping it into the correctly – if unimaginatively – named ‘big tasty consomme’. 

But whichever genius decided to put the cheese on the outside of the taco before grilling deserves a statue in Lime Street Station, right next to Ken Dodd. When you go to Picante (assuming you eat beef), you owe it to yourself to try this superstar dish. A simple tenner today, but a food memory for the ages. 

The drinks live up to these standards and then some. Our fave? The Miami Vice frozen margarita – a creamy, cheery, citrus combination with the same aesthetics as a Drumstick lolly, albeit one that transmits brain freeze at the speed of light. 

To quote from the horse’s mouth: “Picante is part Mexican cantina, part margarita mecca and part Latin house party”. And if that doesn’t float your boat for the long hot summer of 2025 (we’re calling it now), you’re Day of the Dead inside.