- Web: Common Bar and Kitchen
- Addy: 12 Edward St. Blackpool FY1 1BH.
- Email: hello@commonbars.co.uk
About the Common Bar and Kitchen.
Common Bar and Kitchen, located on Edward Street, is one of the newest venues to hit the town. The venue, located just behind the old post office building is slightly off the main tourist drag yet is a great destination bar or simply a decent stop off for some food and / or drinks perhaps before an event at the Winter Gardens.
The venue opened early 2022 and they took an old former solicitors office and transformed it into what many would say, is one of the coolest venues in town. The place now, both inside and out is hardly recognisable to its former self.
The venue has been set up by the same people behind other iconic Blackpool venues you may know, Dirty Blondes, Paradise Coast and the Nook on Cheapside and provides the discerning visitor a range of fabulous eats, some brilliant drinks and top notch entertainment with regular live music being hosted.
Our Visit.
We took a visit to sample a couple of cocktails and some of their menu. The food on offer they class as ‘South American street food’, they serve a staple of freshly made tacos, loaded nachos and burritos amongst others and all provided at the speed of fast food though with a quality that you wouldn’t associate with the speed of preparation. There’s also an array of vegan options on offer which look fantastic…. even for the most hardened carnivore!
We visited on a Sunday lunch time with the kids in tow, just as the venue had opened for the day. The venue has a great relaxed feel to it and the staff are most welcoming and attentive, this may be because its fairly new and everyone is excited and motivated but if they keep up the standard of service we saw today, they won’t go far wrong!
We aren’t massive fans of the type of food they do tbh….. or at least, we weren’t before our visit but like a lost soul that finds religion, we’re converted!
The Food.
We wanted to get a decent cross section of the menu to try and wanted to get the kids to share in too. We ordered the standard South American street food you’d expect …..a slow cooked pork burrito, some chicken tacos, chorizo cooked in honey and red wine, some halloumi fries (Never heard of such things a few years back, now seem to be on sale all over the place) and finally as an insurance policy just incase the fussy kids wouldn’t eat anything, some paprika fries.
The food tasted incredibly fresh and surpassed our expectation taste wise, the burritos (which cost £8) had the perfect balance of ingredients, (meat, black beans, seasoned rice, cheese, guacamole and salsa). This was served with tortilla chips and a spicy salas dip….. universal approval all round and was surprisingly filling.
The tacos (pictured above) served in soft, fluffy tortilla were again, exceptional. The chicken was succulent, they struck the balance of meat and garnish perfectly. The tacos cost £7 for the 3 however they have a special offer on if you head there on a Tuesday night, ‘Taco Tuesdays’ is a thing… we are told….. they do a single Taco for only a pound – this night is rightly getting busy so if you fancy it, we’d suggest book a table!
Sides we got to share, we haven’t that much to say about… the halloumi fries were great, so easy to over do halloumi fries but ours were spot on, paprika fries were great and demolished by the kids so cant give much of a view on them lol, but the surprise package was the chorizo in honey and red wine, our eldest could sit and eat them all day and no doubt we’ll be pestered to pop in for more next time we are in town!!
To drink, we had to try a couple of cocktails….. despite it being only a little past midday…. and the South America classic of diet cokes for the kids 😉
The Drink.
Common Bar and kitchen provides a full cocktail menu, and unlike some other places we could name… but won’t…. mix the cocktails fresh rather than simply pouring them out from a premixed carton.
The venue provides a selection of ‘happy hour’ cocktails where you can buy 2 select cocktails for £14, else just go free style from the menu and grab one for £8. One thing to call out…. happy hour is actually all day everyday so if you’re a cocktail fan and like a bargain, just pop in anytime 🙂
Besides a great cocktail, the venue does also provide a decent range of other drinks. Naturally, theres draft soft drinks but theres also a decent range of wines available and a number of beers of tap and also to appease even the most fussy beer snob, there’s a number of ales available from cans and bottles.
The Vibe.
Common Bar and Kitchen definitely continues with the same type of ‘chilled’ atmosphere some of you may have experienced at Dirty Blonds or Paradise Coast. You are felt most welcome from walking through the door until it’s time to leave. The whole place has a nice clean, fresh feel to it, which in part, may be because it’s new, but certainly adds to the experience!
The decor is funky and interesting and contributes to the atmosphere, there’s loads to look at, pick out and talk about, the feature wall upstairs was completed by a local street artist, it’s a excellent piece of work and great to see local venues supporting local people and other local businesses.
Soooo…. in Summary??
Basically, Common Bar and Kitchen is a really cool venue providing quality drinks, and shockingly good food in an atmosphere which is so laid back it’s horizontal. The quality they produce is way over what you’d get from the chain pubs in the local area and truth be told, is higher than a lot of the independents. The venue is an asset to the area, looks fab inside and out and is a brilliant addition to Blackpool.
…..but that’s just our view….. why not try it out and let us know what you think?
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Great review which absolutely represents my own experience over several visits now. Highly recommended destination, which is indeed a super Blackpool asset