BEFORE the days of Liverpool One, options for al fresco dining were severely limited. But since we were blessed with a shiny new place to shop and eat, the world is our oyster . . . or sushi roll, or fajita, writes Dawn Collinson

And where Liverpool One wins hands down over its Trafford Centre rival is when the sun shines. Because, far from sweltering in the undercover heat, you can cool off in the fresh air instead.

One of those taking full advantage of its indoor and outdoor location is Pesto.

“At Pesto,” explained the menu, “we invite our guests to experience the flavours of Italy by choosing a number of small dishes . . .” And you can’t say fairer than that.

The only slight issue is that my friend and I have differing tastes – she is a meat-lover, while I’m more veggie. But, familiar with the compromise, we decided on four dishes to share and two to keep all to ourselves.

Actually, one of our half-dozen was a bit ill-thought out.

Having gone for a bruschetta al pomodoro e basilico (£2.95), we then ordered a selection of Italian breads (£2.45) too. Who on earth wants two of their six dishes to be bread? Not us, to be honest, but the bruschetta was so nice – lots of chunky sweet tomatoes and plenty of garlic – it outweighed any regrets.

For our other two shared dishes, we chose aranchini, deep-fried balls of saffron risotto rice filled with mozzarella (£3.25) and insalata nicoise (£3.75).