The Uprise of Liverpool’s Independents

Merseyside is home to a number of independent food & drink companies who are taking the world by storm one bottle of beer or cupcake at a time.

The great city of Liverpool is filled with bars, restaurants and cafés who are fully supportive of local businesses and will do all they can to stay local. From bakeries to breweries we’ve listed some of the best independent companies who were born in Merseyside.

The Funky Nut Company

Established in Liverpool, The Funky Nut Company is reinventing peanut butter. The local retailer sells all kinds of varieties, from classic peanuts to cashew nuts, almonds, hazelnuts and even walnuts to name a few. There isn’t a nut which hasn’t been turned into peanut butter form with the Funky Nut Company. Within these different nuts you’ll find flavours such as honey & sea salt, spicy salt & black pepper as well as white & milk chocolate.

As a special Christmas treat, The Funky Nut Company have released a pack of three festive flavours which include Oh My Mince Pie, Ho Ho Pistachio and Santa’s Salted Chocolate.

The peanut butters are all made with natural ingredients and in small batches ensuring they are as fresh as can be. Local retailers such as Lunya and the Baltic Bakehouse, you’ll also find them at local farmers markets.

Cakehole

“Boss cakes that happen to be vegan”

Liverpool’s most scrumptious cake company with a brilliant name is Cakehole, making vegan cakes and cupcakes for the people of Liverpool. Clare who works from her kitchen set up the company in early 2015 and works alone on these marvellous cake creations.

There are a range of flavours such as, Vanilla Fudge, Triple Chocolate, Chocolate Orange, Lemon, Strawberry & Raspberry Coffee and Chocolate Chip. Clare is hoping to expand in the near future but at the moment her bakes consist of cupcakes and the occasional large cake for special occasions.

Cakehole cakes are stocked in Dafna’s Cheesecake Factory and Evil Eye Bar on Smithdown Road as well as vegan store, Purple Carrot and Maguire’s Pizza Bar in the city centre.

East Avenue Bakehouse

Jo and Charlotte’s passion for truly independent food is at the heart of East Avenue Bakehouse which is located on Bold Street. They believe in honest food, local produce and homemade bread, they freshly bake each and every loaf on site and freshly prepare all meals from breakfast to brunch, lunch and evening.

East Avenue Bakehouse is a 24-hour operation, Charlotte starts work at 3am to ensure the freshest breads are ready for the morning to be served in the shop and delivered to other establishments in the city.

Breads range from white farmhouse to honey and spelt, chai seed, tencher and beigal ensuring the people of Liverpool have a constant supply of freshly baked bread every day of the week.

Grab Your Spoon

Need something special to spread on your freshly baked bread, Grab Your Spoon can provide you with just that.

Owner Lucy makes some of the best spreads about such as Plum & Mulled Wine Jam, Raspberry & Peach Jam, Pear & Date Relish, Balsamic Onion Relish, Pink Grapefruit & Ginger Marmalade and a number of seasonal preserves such as  Rhubarb, Blood Orange & Vanilla Jam and Pumpkin & Ginger Chutney.

Lucy makes everything from her (EHO) approved kitchen at home in Liverpool to ensure everything is fresh and delicious. You can find Lucy and her amazing selection of jams & chutneys at Lark Lane farmers market every 4th Saturday of the month, Grab Your Spoon is also stocked at The Liverpool Cheese Company and Homebaked Anfield with an online shop coming soon.

92 Degrees Coffee

92 Degrees Coffee has one major claim to fame, it is the first micro-roastery and coffee shop in Liverpool where they produce excellent tasting coffee expertly made by the in house baristas.

Draw & Code and Danny Marfany are the masterminds behind 92 Degrees and have followed their love for exceptional coffee.

Located on Hardman Street, 92 Degrees is within Liverpool’s most iconic buildings, The Old Blind School which is carefully being restored to its former glory. The coffee shop also faces the Philharmonic Hall and Pub and is open much later than your average coffee shop as it hosts a variety of music and arts events.

Brough’s Butchers

Brough’s Butchers is a group of independent butchers in the Northwest who share a desire to provide the best quality meats around. Brough’s believe that quality meat starts on the farm with the majority of their meats being traceable they come from British farms.

The independent butchers sell all the usual butcher meat such as beef, lamb, pork, bacon & sausage and poultry, they also have a range of pastries on offer in the shop including pies and sausage rolls.

Brough’s have a number of independent butchers across Liverpool including; Southport, Formby, Ormskirk and Burnswick Dock. They also offer a delivery service for local customers.

R&H Wine

R&H Wines is an Independent wine merchant specialising in quality, hand made wines with a lean to the organic and biodynamic.

Hidden in Liverpool’s city centre, R&H Wines are located on Queen Avenue which runs between Castle Street and Dale Street offering hundreds of wines of all different ages from all around the world.

Owner Devin is so enthusiastic and is an oracle when it comes to wine, he will inform you exactly what pairings go best and where they all come from.

PHOM

PHOM are on a mission to get the world drinking loose leaf tea, one cup at a time

A joint venture between two university friends, Phil and Omar are reintroducing loose leaf tea and changing the way people drink tea. Starting in Liverpool, PHOM has successfully flourished in Liverpool and is now taking on the world.

After a successful trip to the Dragon’s Den, PHOM left with exactly what they needed to change the world. The independent company supplies loose leaf to deli’s, restaurants and cafés in the city. PHOM is furthermore stocked in Germany and the states meaning the small tea company from Liverpool is well on its way to ensuring the world are drinking loose leaf tea, one cup at a time.

Liverpool Cheese Company

Founded in 2006, the Liverpool Cheese Company provides the people of Merseyside with an excellent selection of fine cheese’s from around the world.

Established in 2006, Liverpool Cheese Company are the purveyors of specialist and artisan cheeses, matured in our grade II listed old dairy in Liverpool’s historic Woolton Village. Owners, Vickie Anderson and Ian Tomlinson have a great passion for everything cheese and have opened an online store so those all around the UK can get their cheese fix.

The Liverpool Cheese Company also offers wedding cakes, made entirely of cheese, hampers and a wide selection your normal everyday cheeses.  They also deliver or you can order to collect from store.

Madhatters Brewery

“Boss beer from Liverpool”

Based in Liverpool’s Baltic triangle, Madhatters Brewery are dedicated to making the finest craft beers in the city which are made with live yeast.

Founded in 2013 by Sue Starling & Gareth Mathews, they wanted to created Liverpool beer which was fun, experimental and strong. They are known in the city for their high quality beers of which new blends are produced every two weeks.

The beers take influence from the local Liverpool area and include names such as ‘Penny Lane’ and ‘Toxteth IPA’ which certainly pack a punch.

 The Liverpool Craft Beer Company

Another independent beer company based in Liverpool is The Liverpool Craft Beer Company. They built their own brewery from scratch in 2010 before the world and his dog knew what craft beer really meant.

Working hard behind the scenes, The Liverpool Craft Beer Company has gone on to revolutionise the brewery industry in Liverpool and has gone from strength to strength.

Located on Love Lane near Stanley Dock, The Liverpool Craft Beers are uniquely labelled and offer a whole range of specially brewed beers such as ‘The White Fox’, ‘Brown Bear’ and ‘Oatmeal Stout’ to name a few.

The great thing about all of these independent companies is that they all support each other with many of them selling another independents products. We hope you agree that Liverpool has a wealth of fantastic independent food & drink companies, who are ensuring the people of Liverpool are kept well fed & watered. Signature’s Liverpool aims to celebrate everything that makes this city what is it today, from its history to the people and the companies who where born here.