TWELVE FUSION KITCHEN SOUTHPORT 12 Princes Street, Southport PR8 1EZ

"Probably the best meal I've ever had in Southport, and an absolute hidden gem. Despite not having had a reservation, Paulo and Nathan welcomed us in and were fantastic hosts. Great food and great hospitality."

"Absolutely wonderful food - I ordered the wagyu tenderloin and it was incredible. Partner ordered the crispy beef which he loved. Brilliant menu - will definitely need to return to try more. This restaurant has a lovely, cosy atmosphere while also feeling elegant and sophisticated. It's a small place, you almost feel like you're sat in someone's dining room in their home, able to see into the kitchen. The chef and waitresses were so welcoming and accommodating. Overall, 5 stars, a delightful place."

"Went to this place originally because of the wagyu beef mention, but wanted to try other options first to see what the place was like and it did not disappoint. Paulo is friendly and calm, very kind and able to answer questions on the dish, make recommendations without pushing them on you, allowing you plenty of time to choose and offering substitutions if there are things you are not happy about. It feels like you are at home and just being cooked food by family, with choices you can make to make the experience nicer. The trio starter is wonderful, I dislike mustard with a passion and even I loved the sweet mustard sauce that goes with the black pudding fritter (Morcela) which was so very soft on the inside and so very satisfying to bite through on the outside, the the trout was wonderful, like having a fish pie in bite form so tasty and almost creamy inside with a lovely outside to it, there was a smoked sausage as well which was wonderfully smoked and savoury The chilli beef with fried rice is amazing as well, so very crispy outside, with the softest beef I have ever had on the inside, very generous portion of beef, so lovely and sticky and very deep almost caramel flavour sauce. The rice was also lovely deep soy sauce flavours, with lots of little vegetables in them. The Nata was unlike anything I have ever had before, with the puff pastry, and Chantilly cream which was very nice. The Nata had almost fully liquid hot custard inside, with the flakiest crispest pastry I have ever had, so satisfying (next time I will have to try the other kind which has choux pastry instead), very rare to see dairy free ice cream which was very tasty. my partner and I had a white port (which I didn't know was a thing) which was amazingly sweet almost like mead, and a custard tart shot of something which was like liquid alcohol custard with cinnamon on, like a fancy eggnog but really tasty. Paulo and the new server who did really well on a first day checked in on us throughout and talked about Portugal, but did not at any point feel like he was standing over us or speeding us up. Everything was relaxed, and the music is inoffensive. The place looks great and the seats are very comfortable (we sat in the black plastic seats which from pictures looks like they might not be but they were very nice to sit in for more than 2 hours) Also, there are like 3 or 4 pokestops for pokemon go at this location which is nice."

"Well that was amazing! We had just the nicest meal tonight and I heartily recommend this place. The atmosphere is very very laid back. Paulo is such a friendly man and very laid back in his approach to customers. He doesn't try and rush you through the food, we sat for nearly three hours and, while I admit it wasn't busy, there was no sense of us taking up room, unlike other restaurants. The dress code is casual (you're fine in jeans and a t-shirt) and there is parking (on street) which is free after 6pm (I think). Now the food - gorgeous. Everything was fresh, well cooked, and extremely tasty. I had the Portuguese Trio, chicken teriyaki with fried garlic rice and then an almond tarte (with almond liqueur over) and dairy free ice-cream to finish. The trio was excellent - greens perfectly cooked, tasty balance of flavours and textures. It's not a big starter, but every individual morsel of the trio gives you a different experience: fishy, smoky, umami yet sweet. The main of chicken was one of the most moist chicken dishes I've ever eaten, the sauce was delicious and it wasn't just all rice with a bit of protein (see pictures). Finally, the almond tarte. It was like the stuff you get inside an almond croissant but at another softer, less sweet and processed level. I even enjoyed the dairy free ice cream (which my partner swore they couldn't tell it was dairy-free). We didn't have wine, but we did have a white port shot to start, which was amazing and sweet like a dessert wine, and a palette cleanser before the main course (neither were on our bill, both were offered). I really cannot praise this place and our host Paulo enough. It was a perfect evening for us - good food, good company, and a welcoming atmosphere."

"A beautiful little gem of a restaurant, tucked away off the beaten track. Stylishly decorated. Beautifully clean. Paulo’s menu is absolutely delicious. Impeccable attention to detail and very personal service. I highly recommend you pay him a visit."