THE Italian restaurant market is a pretty crowded one on Britain’s high street.

The choice seems endless, money off vouchers end up flooding the inbox of your e-mail.

And so it was that we decided to venture to Liverpool One to try out Jamie’s Italian.

As you first enter, you can tell this one is trying to stand out from the crowd.

Firstly, the kitchen is open, so you can see the chefs working as your meals come to the pass.

And the staff are not just friendly, but extremely knowledgeable.

Our waitress was not only happy to talk through the specials, she also explained what to expect from the vast array of mains to be found on the menus.

After much deliberation — there is a vast fountain of choice — we started with a selection of artisan breads.

I’m always a little dubious of the over use of artisan these days, but this was truly tasty. Especially the olive tapenade and chilli sauce they came with.

The highlight of the day though was the main.

I chose a soft shelled crab. It came fried and with a delicious salad. Fresh, home made and unusual — it was a real delight.

My girlfriend had the sausage pappardelle — a ragu in a glorious sauce, deep and rich in flavour.

And of course no Sunday lunch would be complete without desert.

Mine was modestly named Epic Chocolate Brownie, but it deserved the title, served as it was with salted caramel ice cream and popcorn.

My girlfriend had the monstrous Amalfi lemon meringue cheesecake, with a beautiful sharp lemon flavour — you won’t leave hungry with this.

At £15 for my main and deserts more than £5, it perhaps isn’t as cheap as its rivals, sbut it more than makes up for that in the experience.

Fresh food, served up in great surroundings with knowledgeable staff.

What more can you ask for?