Franklins Deli The Met Quarter

An independent deli, that offers freshly cooked quality food, what is better than that? It sounds great, it’s somewhere I want to eat, in fact it’s somewhere I went to eat. Franklin’s Deli prides itself on being independent and high quality, deploying the now ubiquitous claims of local suppliers and quality produce. In another recent lunch trip, to the Hub, I found their claims to be accurate, but this isn’t always the case. I visited the outlet in the Met Quarter, the rather desolate shopping centre that seems to be getting emptier every time I visit. Once again I was hoping that a restaurant’s claims would live up to what it actually produces.

I was looking forward to my Chilli tower burger, but what arrived in front of me was quite short of the mark. The two thin patties of meat where very over cooked, slightly burnt and dry, they did carry some flavour but they didn’t convince me of being a quality product. I would think that they were bought in burgers, but why? It’s not a difficult thing to make your own patties, and this is something Franklins should be doing, if it wants to meet is own self-imposed expectations. The bread that it came served in was a poor example of mass-produced pap, it was devoid of flavour and texture. How can somewhere serve this style of bread after lording up its quality produce?

It wasn’t all bad, however, the chilli it came with was very nice, freshly made and lifted the other parts of the dish. So if they can do a good chilli, why can’t they source good bread and burgers? And why couldn’t they cook the patties properly?

If a restaurant’s claims are not based on the food it serves on its plates, then you can only leave with a sense of disappointment. There are signs of skill and understanding in the kitchen, but with the produce they used there was little quality to work with. I was hoping for so much more.

Sid @liverpoolRR