If you’re from Manchester or spend any great deal of time in the Rainy City, you might be thinking ‘Rudy’s Neapolitan Pizza? Been there, done that, got the Instagram snap’. For me though, with Liverpool as my motherland, having a Rudy’s restaurant right on my doorstep is a fairly new and super exciting prospect. The restaurant only launched onto the Liverpool food and drink scene at the end of last year (September to be precise) but it’s already gathered quite the momentum. I can vouch for this expeditious popularity after spending a lazy Sunday evening there last weekend.
Rudy's make fresh dough daily, with a unique fermenting process.
Rudy’s Liverpool resides on the hospitality hub of Castle Street and is quite clearly on brand with its glassy façade, light wood furniture, white tile walls, bench seating, exposed kitchen and quirky artwork. Staff whizz around the sizeable establishment in their New Balance trainers and Rudy’s branded t-shirts with the kind of upbeat aura that’s chilled out, inviting and most importantly, genuine. It’s candlelit by night, bursting with natural sunlight during the day and an eclectic mixed-bag of cool and casual around the clock, making it one of those places you could sit for hours on end.
The Rudy’s USP comes in the form of a unique dough-making process. Made the authentic Naples way, the pizza dough is whipped up fresh each day, left to ferment for 24 hours and then blast cooked for just 60 seconds to create the signature thin, cushiony base and crisp, bubbly crust.
The pizza dough was light and fluffy, how heavenly does that look?
The menu is small but what’s on there is delicious, with allowances for vegan diners too. I went for the Ancozzese (£8.90) which is white base pizza, without tomato, topped with Tuscan sausage and spinach, while my partner in dine went for a classic Margherita with extra Parmesan and sundried tomatoes (£7.70). Both of us were blown away by the quality of the large edible frisbees placed in front of us but if stringy cheese and stuffed crust is more your bag, you mightn’t have been quite so enamoured. We, however, loved them – washed down perfectly with a punchy Blood Orange Mimosa (£5.90) and one of the most sweet and sophisticated Amaretto Sours (£5.90) I’ve ever had the pleasure of sipping.
The DesignMyNight Digest
While the menu is modest, the quality of food, cocktail mixology and warm-and-fuzzy atmosphere go the extra mile for such a casual dining experience. Cool without being cold, and cosy without losing any street cred, Rudy’s Neapolitan Pizza is the kind of place you hanker after when you fancy booking a table somewhere nice but still want to scoff a big piece of floppy pizza in laid back surroundings, a marinara-scented home from home.
