Philharmonic Dining Rooms

having looked forward to my 1st visit here with my Wife & 85 yr Father and Sister i cannot deny this is a spectacular building, however we were unhappy with the quality of food offered here, we booked for a Sunday lunch  recently and found on arrival, the tomato soup off the menu, and all steaks off the the menu, we all settled for the Sunday Roast ie Beef, Pork, and Chicken all duly arrived on cold plates with cold yorkshire pudding and luke warm veg.the wine however was good quality.we decide to skip deserts and had coffee from the bar downstairs, but had to wait some time for it despite the place not being busy at all , the coffee was however very good. My Wife and I had travelled from Herfordshire for this occassion, with my  Father who remembered it fondly Whilst courting my mother ( they were in The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir)but was saddened and let down to receive such poor farye, and remarked to me later, we would have better in a Harvester

go there alot, its alright service is ok srinks are good

The Phil is such a good pub to look at. In fact so many Nicholson's pubs are, but this may well be the most impressive. In fact is probably a bit too grand for my taste, which just shows how hard I am to please.

Cherry Porter Dark Angel...or some other combination of those words? Whatever -  it made for a decent pint.

Beer was expensive but the males toilets are worth the visit lol. Great pub so British

Great beer selection and fantastic building. A must see for anyone visiting Liverpool!

whilst i love the phil and have enjoyed many a good drink in here, recently have noticed that standards may be slipping.
went in for a Sunday roast recently and all three dinners were cremated! the beef was so well done it was crumbly! to top it off there was a weird smell floating in the air!
saying this, it is an amazing interior and the real ale selection is there, worth a visit when visiting Liverpool but i think I've knocked this off my pub route in town.

Was on my 2nd visit to Liverpool yesterday and just had to go back to The Phil. Just as good as ever. Beer great (Kelham Island), cracking Shepherd;'s Pie with proper lamb chunks, fresh vef and proper mash. Friendly staff - had a good laff with them about "is this pie made from fresh Shepherds mate?"
How can you give anything LESS than 58s? I love Liverpool's old boozers, particularly Tom Baldwin lol

The Phil has twice been my local and during those periods I seemed to live in either the dining hall or one of the hidden side rooms.

The Phil is a CAMRA approved pub so the beer is always worth trying out and the wine, cheap plonk as it is, is well priced. Food is good value and a bit more interesting than the normal pub fayre of burger and chips (although I think you can get burger and chips) and service has always been good. There are set times for serving food so worth a check if you are making a special trip.

As with every other review about The Phil, the men's toilets are fantastic. The staff will let ladies in for a peek if you want to look.

Beautiful interior. Worth visiting to sit in the comfy chairs and take in the view :-)
Bottle of red wine was about £7 which is pretty good by Liverpool city centre pub standards ( I had to pay £12 for a bottle in another pub closer to the centre! )
The staff all look under 20.
Haven't tried the food so can't comment on that :-)

If the breathy exhortations of the bloke who was talking about Liverpool on Radio 4 this morning are to be believed, Hope Street is the North West of England's answer to the 'Boulevard Saint Germain' - and the Philharmonic Pub is its gleaming, elegant epicentre.

Whilst I'm not entirely sure that I agree with the first part of the above statement, it's difficult not to agree with him that the Philharmonic pub is a very special drinking establishment indeed. It's a testament to stunning Edwardian design, and every single part of its interior is swathed in gleaming mahogany, beaten copper reliefs, elegant tiles, and art-deco chandeliers. No wonder then that it's a Grade 2 listed building, and is frequently cited as being one of the most beautiful pubs in the UK.

If rumours are to believed, The Philharmonic also has the best gent's toilets in the whole of Liverpool, if not the world. However, not being a bloke, I can neither confirm or deny this statement - although I have been temped to drag up and sneak in on more than one occasion just to check out their splendour for myself.

But enough about the interior - what about the beer? Well, being a CAMRA approved pub. it has a wide selection of delicious artisan ales which a comely barmaid will recommend to you with a nod, a wink and a sly sample if you're lucky. They also do a great selection of wines, and a halfway decent selection of pub grub standards - although don't come here expecting anything particularly brilliant on that front.

But what I love best about The Philharmonic are its little side rooms, all named after different composers. Back when I was first courting my beloved, we would regularly hide away in one of these and plot world domination over a nice glass of red, and I still love coming back here with him to celebrate the fact that we've managed to remain together for so long without throwing crockery at each other.

The Philharmonic is a beautiful beautiful pub. If you only go to one boozer the next time you're on Hope Street, make sure that it's this one.

Stunning building with men's toilets that are definitely worth a visit (or a peek through the door). The food is pretty good and the beers available are varied and reasonable.

It does need a revamp though and perhaps a change of hands, the last time I was there it felt very much like a place trading on its reputation and nothing more.

This place needs a quick change of hands. The pub has the history and potential to be great but falls way short, head down Hardman St for a range of pubs worth a visit. The beer here is inconsistent and the food out of a micro-wave. The staff would be great at a student union, but not here. The famous toilets have been too smelly for too many years. Don't waste your time.

In the 60's and 70's I spent my late teens and early 20's here. Rubbed shoulders with famous people. It had great beer and great atmosphere, in one of the snugs always football was discussed in the other philosophy and other clever things. Lovely girls flirted in the corridor and usually a couple of old fellas supped mild at the small table by the fire place. I returned after 30 years in NZ, one evening with one of my boyhood mates, to relive old times. Nothing had changed! Same football and philosophy pretty girls and good beer till we realised we were the old fellas sitting at the table!! We supped up and left, it was too sad!

You can't fail to be impressed by this architecturally splendid pub. From the marble loos to the two snugs titled Brahms and Liszt, to the spacey grand room with its lofty ceiling, everywhere you look there is a wow factor. Not greatly impressed with the real ale range when I visited (12 September) - the Cains bitter was very average - but I intend to revisit in the hope that I was just unlucky with my choice and things improves. The pub itself is incentive enough to go back. Close to both Cathedrals if you are on a sight-seeing trip.

Its well worth a visit. Not sure if it would be one of my regular pubs. Shame I didnt have time to eat there. A great place to drop into when you are out during the day and want to relax for a pint. Inside it has a great interior, plenty of seats although could do with a touch-up.

Great building but a wasted opportunity. Could be an amazing place for top quality food and beer but smacks of big brewery having got hold of a gem and ruining it. Such a shame. Does have some good beers though.

This place is nice for special occasions, but I wouldn’t go on a regular basis.

Ate increadibly rich mushroom and melted cheese dish here, good value. The place is quite formal and abit too anomymous for me on a regular basis though.

This is probably one of the most well known pub in Liverpool, thanks to it having very ornate gents toilets and also being mentioned by John Lennon as one of his favourite pubs. I would agree that if you are visiting Liverpool then it is definitely worth making a trip to “the Phil” as it is known locally. When you walk in you see a beautiful traditional bar with several rooms leading off. There are two very cosy wood panelled rooms, and beyond those there is the grand dining room. I prefer the smaller rooms myself as they feel warmer, but you should have a look around. The most famous feature of the pub is the gents toilet. Even women can visit these if you ask the bar staff to take you. I still haven’t gone to see them yet as the bar has normally been busy when I’ve been there, but the next time I’m there and it’s a bit quieter I’m going to ask. All my male friends have confirmed that it is indeed something special. They serve food and have a restaurant upstairs. I haven’t eaten here but everyone I know that has said it was good.

They serve a fairly good range of beer at the Phil, normally having two guest ales on tap and either Deuchars or Greene King IPA. The prices are quite reasonable.

A pub well beyond what comes to mind when the word pub is heard. This place is so grand and of another time I actually wondered if I have fallen into a time warp when I stepped foot inside.
The interior is a combination of sumptuous polished oak(?) and tiling that leads to a series of different rooms, some barely bigger than nooks. The tiling cannot be missed, literally and figuratively. It covers most surfaces and in grand patterns and colours. I never made it into the gents but did go to the ladies and was aghast to see whatever the original decor was it has not remained. It is just a plain old pub toilet for the poor ladies.
The range of ales was great and enough choice to have a good few pints without repitition. I sat in the Grand Dining Room, which was certainly grand but the immensely high ceilings and brighter lighting made it less cozy for a drink.