My love for Salthouse Bacaro on Castle Street knows no bounds. It’s a bit embarrassing to be honest. I’m like that cringey girl who incessantly posts photos on their Instagram story of their other half with the romance filter and the caption ‘This One xx’. It’s a polyamorous relationship though because the owners are also accountable for a few of my other favourite eateries in Liverpool, including Hanover Street Social and Rocket & Ruby so I ain’t afraid to dabble.
It’s actually Rocket & Ruby we’re here to talk about today, kids so sit down, get comfortable and pop your concentration cap on because you’re about to get a valuable lesson in how to smash Sunday brunch with straight aces.
Rocket & Ruby, Castle Street, Liverpool
I’m at that stage in my life now where riding the Jager train and staying up ‘til the early hours fills me with nothing but pure dread. I’d take a nice brisk walk in the countryside or brunch with my buds over stomping around on sticky dancefloors at 2am any day of the week. So, last Sunday, when I booked a table for brunch at Rocket & Ruby with two of my nearest and dearest, I was very much in my element.
I’ve been to Rocket & Ruby before, but for dinner. It sits on the corner of Castle Street which is fast becoming a hive of cosmopolitan activity in the centre of the city. It has a laidback café vibe – almost Parisienne in its design and ambience – with beautiful rustic décor, fresh blooms everywhere you turn and an expansive open kitchen which really makes you feel at home.
Fried chicken for breakfast at Rocket & Ruby
As I mentioned, my last trips here have been evening affairs and therefore involved feasting from the colourful menu of multicultural small plates. This time, I was super excited to be sinking my teeth into the Rocket & Ruby brunch menu, which is served from 10am-3pm every Sunday.
Before we go any further, can I get a HELL YEAH for restaurants which appreciate (and serve) breakfast food well into the afternoon?!
This is also reflected in the menu itself, which combines classic breakfast dishes like Eggs Benedict (£6.95), Buttermilk Pancakes (£6.95) and Shakshuka (£7.50) with less traditional plates like the Crispy Breaded Chicken with Harissa Mac & Cheese (£9.95) – brought to fame following Bacaro’s stint at the Baltic Market – and a Pork Char Sui Brioche Roll (£6.95).
After much deliberation, the three of us settled on: the Ruby Full Vegetarian (£7.95) with gluten free toast, Halloumi & Egg Brioche Roll with R&R Ketchup (£5.50), Kimchi on Toast with Melted Cheddar & Plum Mayonnaise (£6.95) and the RFC! Rocket Fried Chicken with Waffle Fries, Crispy Onions, Jalapenos & Cheese (£9.95).
Everything was absolutely delicious, as is customary of Rocket & Ruby and all of its siblings but standout highlights for us had to be the Kimchi on Toast, the comforting combination of halloumi, egg and ketchup on brioche and the tender hunks of crunchy-fried chicken breast in the RFC!. With a vegetarian, somebody who isn’t that keen on eggs and a part-time gluten-dodger around the table, it was awesome to see how accessible and all-encompassing a Sunday brunch menu can be.
Although there are a couple of Breakfast Cocktails on the menu, including a refreshing Lemon Drop Bellini (£8) with Citron vodka, triple sec and prosecco, we decided to keep it a sober affair with a couple of smoothies and a big foamy cappuccino. (We did later go on to sink two Mimosas and an Amaretto Sour at Rudy’s Pizza just down the road but listen, the sun was cracking the flags so it would have been rude not to!)
I was seduced by The Yellow One smoothie (£4.50) which was an irresistible recipe of Biscoff, banana, chocolate and almond milk. It was just the right amount of sweet, thick and indulgent when slurping through the straw but could have perhaps benefited from some ice or frozen banana as it’s serving at room temperature did it a bit of an injustice in my opinion.
My accomplice went for the far more health-conscious The Green One (£4.50) which muddled apple, spinach and avocado with a twist of lemon if you prefer something zestier and more refreshing to wash your brunch down with. I’m just a greedy little gremlin who quite simply cannot resist the seduction of anything which has a bit of naughty to go along with the nice.
Speaking of which, I can’t wait to get back to Rocket & Ruby to get my hands on The Elvis – a brioche roll filled with bacon, peanut butter, maple syrup, banana and berries. Hot diggity dog, does that sound good. Feel free to tag me on Instagram or Twitter if you get there before me to make me drool in envy, I won’t hold a grudge for too long, promise…
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I was very kindly invited to review brunch at Rocket & Ruby but all words, photographs, opinions, teeth, hair, boobs and nails are my very own.