Bagels and Dreams at East River – Not Your Average Bottomless Brunch

Since throwing open its doors late last year, East River cocktail bar has been making a true splash on the Liverpool food and drink scene. The thoroughfare of Allerton Road, where it’s located, has been enjoying a definite revival of late – and we can confirm that East River is set to be a real destination venue for those who want to relax by day and revel by night.

During daylight hours, the place has all the charm of a real life New York Jewish delicatessen, serving up a food menu with one simple concept done brilliantly – the humble bagel. Make no mistake though, the guys here are about so much more than simply salmon and cream cheese (although if that’s your go-to, they shall deliver) The menu boasts an exciting array of Manhattan inspired choices – including ‘The Hipster’ (smashed avo, chilli flakes, poached eggs and bacon), as well as the mouth-watering ‘Reuben’ (homemade salt beef, mustard, gouda cheese, red onion and gherkins) In a nutshell, there’s a plethora of choice to satisfy all of your bagel needs…

Bagels are just part of the offering though. East River’s roots really lie with their unbelievable cocktail offering. Something owner, Josh Roberts, knows a thing or two about – having carved a career out of mixing and shaking behind the successful bars he’s headed up, including Camp + Furnace and Red Door. By night, his humble hangout organically transforms into a bustling hotspot before your eyes, with marvellous beverages, live music, great DJ’s, and glinting candles to take carry you through into the small hours. Their extensive cocktail menu is also charmingly divided into Uptown and Downtown sections, with mixers inspired by every corner of The Big Apple. We’d recommend getting yourself down there and ordering a ‘Mile High Clover Club’ (our personal favourite) – ASAP.

So – killer bagel and knockout beverages. A place that’s chilled out by day, and rip roaring in the evening. It’s enough to make you want to set up camp and not move from afternoon until midnight. And funnily enough, that’s exactly what we did when we paid East River a visit to sample their Bottomless Bagel Brunch…

For, quite frankly, a steal of a price (£32.50 pp with drinks) you can indulge in the delights of East River’s bagel sharing platter (between two people), which comes loaded with four giant bagels of your preference, along with a deluge of choice when it comes to gorgeous deli fillings. We opted for salmon, bacon and a double hit of halloumi (obvs). After initially panicking in our starving state that two bagels per person might not be enough to fill the bottomless pits that were our stomachs – our fears were quickly alleviated. We were greeted by four humongous freshly baked bagels, accompanied with a platter laden with crisp salad, gherkins, capers, olives and cream cheese – as well as our all-important fillings. It was in that moment we realised this was not going to be your average brunch…

Having been previously hurt before by the false promises of many ‘bottomless’ brunch deals, where the food portions are deceivingly shrunken down in size, and the drinks are depressingly watered down – East River’s bottomless offering is exactly what it says on the tin. It’s refreshing, different and totally generous. Not to mention filling and delicious – (we struggled to finish our entire board in the end as we were so happily stuffed).

Along with the brilliant food comes the option to add unlimited Prosecco, Aperol Spritz or Bloody Mary’s for a full two hours. Unlike other venues that reluctantly part with their alcohol during bottomless sittings, the guys at East River were super attentive and always on hand for that all important top-up. We ended up staying waaaaay after the prosecco ran dry, happily chugging down Mile High Clover Clubs into the night, and even ordering more food later on (we just really love bagels, ok…)

We couldn’t recommend this spot more if you’re after the perfect chilled out brunch setting that can see you right through to the evening. Watch this space too – as the guys here are set to launch their extended new menu super soon.  We already can’t wait to go back and see what new Manhattan inspired delights are in store next…

For more information visit www.east-river.co/

Jemma Owens