Chaya offers relatively affordable chic and classy simplicity with a few minor slip-ups.

The Venue
Apparently Chaya is Japanese for tea house and, indeed, the previous venue in this location was called The Tea Factory. There's little that's obviously Asian about the interior or the current menu of this attractive bar and restaurant.

Chaya is based in the popular Ropewalks area of central Liverpool. The interior is muted, with an expensive, clean-lined look to it, areas being screened off with dark wood or drapery.

The bar and restaurant is the full width of the building, and has several mezzanine-like levels to it (including private booths if you're feeling extra-special), which gives it an intriguing quality. The dining area looks out onto the street at the rear, which makes for some fascinating people-watching.

The Atmosphere
The intended vibe here is probably understated cool, a bar and restaurant with style and glamour without the trashy glitz. It achieves this in the early evening, even on a Friday. Around midnight may be a different matter however.

The dining area isn't huge but it's not cramped. And while it's only partly screened off from the bar where there's fairly loud music playing, the acoustics are such that it doesn't drown out your over-dinner conversation.

The general feel is neither intimidatingly refined nor scruffily casual, just somewhere comfortably in between and the clientele seem to occupy the same territory. Staff are without exception attentive, friendly and capable, but discreet enough to let you get on with eating.

The Food
The food here was at one time pan-Asian in style, though those days seem to be gone. What's on offer is prepared to a high standard, though not stellar. The goat's cheese galette starter (£4.95) is just right - the disc of pastry is a filling base for the Mediterranean mixture of vegetables on top, and it's not overpoweringly heavy. The parprika-flavoured squid (£3.95), though, is under seasoned.

The fillet steak (£18.95) looks – and tastes – slightly more like a sirloin, but it's perfectly cooked and comes with a moreish mushroom ratatouille and a rich pepper sauce served in its own boat. There's a pleasant range to the menu without it turning into an epic. As well as chicken, fish and steaks, you can order salads, pastas including risotto, and pizzas. The steaks, as with anywhere else, are pricey but the other mains tend to hover around £7 to £8, which is fairly reasonable for this standard.

The vegetarian selection is remarkably cheap (between £4.95 and £5.50), but depressingly unimaginative. Stuffed peppers are a nice home-cooking standby but feel like a bit of an insult in a restaurant. They come in all three colours, which looks good, but makes a third of the meal slightly bitter as the green ones don't roast very well. The filling is tasty, but would be insufficient without a side order. However, the butter mash (£2.50) is deliciously garlicky and soft as snow. The alternatives of stuffed mushrooms and aubergine bake seem equally dated choices.

The desserts are mostly creamy concoctions, and disappointingly the Spanish classic churros are not always available. However the baked vanilla cheesecake is delicious, avoiding the dry, claggy texture that can ruin it. It comes with a wild berry coulis which has been pointlessly stirred through with cream, defeating its purpose of cleansing the palate. The tiramisu is light and fluffy and rounds the meal off well without leaving you feeling defeated.

The Drink
If you're a rose drinker, you may find that both bottles (Tavel Preference £16.50 and Vendange White £14.50) aren't always available. The wine list is extensive, covering old and new worlds, though it's a little pricier than average, and more rose probably needs to be stocked.

There's also a long list of cocktails, including champagne cocktails, and these go for around £6. Bottled beers include Sol, Peroni and Singha and on draught there's Erdinger and Asahi.

The Last Word
Chaya is an impressive bar and restaurant for a relaxed but slightly upmarket meal. And while some elements of the menu don't work so well, there's enough interest here to keep you coming back.

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