Liverpool brewer Robert Cain must have liked what architect Walter Thomas did with the Philharmonic, as he commissioned him to build The Vines, in Lime Street. This is a confident pub, brash even, in an Edwardian Baroque style; built for the wealthy men of commerce, the movers and shakers of Liverpool.

It is a later pub than the Philharmonic, less ornate, but no less grand; more like a bank or gentleman's club than a pub. By our standards it's completely over-the-top, the caryatids (female sculpted supports) each side of the fireplace, the bar front clad in copper, the heavy plaster friezes, inlaid oak panelling. But take a look at the billiard room, through a small door is a vast hall with decoration to the roof, a skylight above and a fireplace so high adults look like children beside it.

Sadly this Grade II* listed pub does not get the recognition it should, it is monumental and deserves more respect. Most of its treasure is hidden from the public at large.