Bold Street was originally laid out as a ropewalk; a long thin area of land used in the manufacture of rope, which was the catalyst for it to be known as ‘The Ropewalks’.

Back in the 18th century, sailors used the street to measure out rope for the sailing ships needed for the busy port industry.. There is a real community on Bold Street and a sense of pride at being a part of the street. In 2010 the Bold Street festival began, a day to celebrate Liverpool’s alternative shopping area. Last year it was resurrected under the ‘Celebrating Bold Street’ name where people came out in their thousands. Either end of Bold Street is a landmark. At one end you can find St Luke’s Church, nicknamed Bombed Out Church after being badly damaged during the blitz in 1941. The other end is home to The Lyceum – a Neo-classical building that was built in the years 1800-1802 and was established as an alternative meeting place to the rowdy coffee houses for several of Liverpool’s abolitionists, such as William Roscoe.

photo by Instagram.com/shootwithjuan/

Bold Street, for us, is its own pocket universe; a snapshot of Liverpool and the diversity it holds in its artillery. It’s the world on a plate, the one street where you can visit all corners of the world in one street. Award-winning eateries, bars, tea shops, gift shops, boutiques and a lot more make the street endearing to shoppers but it is the vibe that stands out. The street doesn’t need any more attention from us, it’s one of the most bustling in Liverpool but beyond the ground level shop floors and behind closed curtains – there are a few secrets worth sharing. From vinyl shops to Indian street food and trainer shops to basement cocktail bars – here’s our ode to the secrets of Bold Street.

photo by https://www.instagram.com/jichi.fuyu/

Bundobust

A series of colourful posters and a set of stairs will take you off the hustle and bustle on Bold Street into a desi delight. Bundobust is the kind of food you could expect on the back streets of India, inspired by the vibrant and varied street foods, especially from their spiritual home of Gujarat. They serve up dishes with their own modern twist, and offer a roster of the most exciting craft beers from both local and international breweries to drink alongside. Since opening, they’ve been recommended in the Michelin Guide, featured in Time Out’s top 10 UK Indian Restaurants and been included in The Sunday Times’ Top 25 Vegetarian Restaurants, amongst plenty of other accolades.

Address: First Floor, 17-19 Bold St, Liverpool L1 4DN

Maray’s Bold Street Basement

Maray opened their first 47 cover restaurant on Bold Street in June 2014 and have since opened two more sites. Their small plates inspired by the Middle East, cocktails and disco cauli have received national acclaim – and for good reason. But beneath the chaos of upstairs there’s a cosy basement bar beneath Bold St that opened in December 2018. It’s the perfect space for guests to enjoy drinks pre and post dinner. The bar is also open to walk-ins, feel free to pop in and take a seat at the bar and be prepared for some truly outstanding drinks.

Address: 91 Bold St, Liverpool L1 4HF

Dig Vinyl

Kids, fancy a history lesson? In a land far, far away from now there was a time when the only way to listen to music was to remove huge frisby-looking objects from their well kept sleeves and to put them under a mystical looking player with the steadiness of a surgeon and hope you didn’t scratch it. There were no iPod’s, no Spotify and no earphones to aid you from talking to anyone. In the 1980’s there were more than 2,200 record stores in the UK, but the advent of music downloads on the internet has seen shops close, shutters pulled down and owners re-train. Record Store Day comes but once a year but thanks to the guys at Dig Vinyl, it is a ritual that the people of Liverpool can rejoice in whenever they please. They recently moved to above Resurrection, the legendary independent clothes shop making both floors worth visiting!

Address: 1st Floor, 27 Bold St, Resurrection, Liverpool L1 4DN

LEAF upstairs

Offering over 40 loose leaf teas, LEAF answered consumers’ calls for a space to enjoy the nation’s favourite drink. You might wonder to yourself – how has LEAF, one of the most popular places on Bold Street, made this list but very few know of their upstairs. It’s a different kind of offering – a much slower pace, perfect for catch-ups and freelancers. The curtain covering the stairs to go upstairs usually makes people assume there’s nothing up there but they couldn’t be more wrong.

Address: 65-67, Bold St, Liverpool L1 4EZ

Artisane

Macarons, choux pastries and enough petit fours to make Mary Berry need a lie-down. Blink and you’ll miss it – Artisane’s tiny French patisserie makes up for its size with huge flavour. Their first shop opened a couple of years ago on the leafy street of Woolton Road and they opened their Bold Street shop a year or so after. It’s the kind of place you smell before you see and when you do see that counter full of perfect-looking pastries – you’ll be in heaven. Grab to go or sit in with a coffee – just don’t blame us if diets get cheated on.

Address: 84A Bold St, Liverpool L1 4HR

Transalpino

Established in 2005 Transalpino fast became the UK’s No 1 dead stock trainer shop sourcing rare trainers and shoes from South America, the USA, Asia and Europe. As one of the few independent UK footwear stockists, they globally source stock which is either unavailable to the market, dead stock or out of mainstream circulation. Garment wise they adopt the same approach, seeking out labels exclusive to them in our city which sit alongside their in house Transalpino clothing range. They take pride and care in this fact, aiming to bring you exciting styles and brands not worn by the masses, powered by original Scouse entrepreneurial spirit and the desire to always be one step ahead.

 Address: 80 Bold St, Liverpool L1 4HR