The Gallery Bar & Grill

Lar de dah is the simple words for this place over priced and plastic scouse

The venue is quite nice and food is good but can be noisy on a Saturday night when the bar fills up — especially with a band playing. But if you know what to expect then it is not a problem.

We recently dined at the Gallery and found the food to be absolutely superb, although on the expensive side. The downside to the evening is that we were overcharged a whopping £20 when our bill arrived, after pointing this out to our waitress, she replied «Oh !! didn’t you have this ?» (incredible, as she’d been the one bringing us our food), she took the bill over to the cashier, he glanced over in our direction and altered the bill. but did not however have the good manners to come over and apologise.
So, excellent food, but check your bill, oh and take some ear-​muffs the noise from the band in the bar area can be deafening.

The Gallery is a fairly recent addition to the Formby drinking scene, with the bar/​grill taking over the space previously taken by Global Video (R. I. P. video rental stores). In the day, they offer various sandwiches, soups and nibbles, as well as a selection of smaller dishes such as fish and chips or burgers. They also have an offer on Sundays, which is a roast for £8.95 which isn’t bad value for money but it certainly not as good a deal as the ones on offer in other establishments locally.
At night, the bar side of The Gallery takes over as Formby village comes alive, with those who cannot fit into Café D’Art drinking away the hours in here. I find it to be a bit too posy for my liking though, preferring the local pubs to ‘trendy’ wine bars like this.
The building itself is very spacious and bright, with the windows that surround it offering a full view of the village (even if it is a bit unspectacular) and on nice days they also open out, making the bar bright and breezy.
If you like sipping a cocktail or two whilst looking out over the village, this place is probably for you but otherwise I’d just stick to The Grapes or Café D’Art.

This beautiful restaurant has played host to two very important celebrations: my boyfriend’s birthday and my own 21^st. I felt that the sophisticated interior and exquisite menu would reflect the significance of the occassions; I was not disappointed. There were a number of large parties dining on both nights, but despite this, both the food and service were fantastic and left me and my guests very impressed. For my girly two one we took advantage of a special offer on meals (alhtough generally the food is reasonably priced, given the quality) and we indulged in some rather tasty cocktails. I may have indulged a little too much as I forget my food order.
I sampled roasted vegetable crisps, tempura prawns and rib eye steak on my first visit, all of which was delicious and inspired my return.
This is one of my favourite restaurants and my only complaint is its location as taxis have been required each time which adds costs to the evening. Obviously it depends on the direction you are coming from whether this is a problem but a designated driver may be required.

This is a great little place to visit to catch up with friends in Formby. Situated right on the corner in the hub of the village, it’s easily accessible and stands out with its classy exterior and large windows.
On a sunny day this is such a relaxing place to sit. The tables and chairs outside on the patio area add a homely feel, where you can indulge in a range of beverages (from wine, to cocktails or coffee) and a nice cake or pastry.
At night The Gallery does some pretty average food, although their desserts are spectacular so worth a visit if you’re more into your afters than you are into your main.
The place is nicely decorated, contemporary and well-​run.
A versatile restaurant indeed.

When the sadly missed Global Video moved out of this large corner premises there were rumblings as to what would take it’s place. It was suggested that perhaps the village would lift it’s ban on franchised fast-​food outlets and that a McDonalds or a Burger King would move in and poison the good people of Formby with delicious, delicious grease.
As it happened, what did take the place of the video rental outlet was a café/​cocktail bar/​restaurant — in a town centre this small, venues must be all things to all men.
As a café it is good — they sell dark roast Italian coffee with those amazing little caramalised biscottis. You can also order a light croissant or other pastry and sit in the outside patio area — were it not for the view of Ladbrokes and Iceland you could get to feel very continental sat out here.
As a cocktail bar the place is pleasant enough and afternoons are the home of 2-​for-​1 deals on classic concoctions, with crowds of the young dressing old and the old dressing young. A gap in the market is certainly being filled here.
As a restaurant it is slightly less impressive, with appetizing food frequently cooked until just a little overdone. Having said that after a few drinks you’re legs will get to feel a little heavy and you’ll probably decide to dine here anyway.

This is just what Formby needed, a nice relaxed, upmarket bar with a great restaurant. I don’t normal eat pizza in restaurants in the UK but the ones I ate here was something else. GREAT!

Good place for lunch with an inventive menu. Had sandwiches which were gourmet (smoked salmon with prawns) on fresh bread served with fries. All the meals looked great, especially couscous salad.

The Gallery Bar & Grill opened in a prime location in the centre of Formby in January 2008. It’s a very stylish and contemporary venue with an open plan layout around a central bar area with seating for 50-​odd diners. Upstairs, a private VIP meeting room can accommodate up to 18 people. The Gallery is open every day from 11am-​11pm serving light lunches during the day and breakfasts at weekends. In the evenings, the kitchen steps up a gear with an internationally flavoured menu