{"id":22007,"date":"2025-04-15T12:48:11","date_gmt":"2025-04-15T12:48:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/22007\/"},"modified":"2025-04-15T12:48:11","modified_gmt":"2025-04-15T12:48:11","slug":"first-look-inside-venue-hoping-to-make-town-the-place-to-be","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/22007\/","title":{"rendered":"First look inside venue hoping to make town the ‘place to be’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Owner Vanessa Lovegrove said the venue has been in the works for several months now<\/p>\n

17:06, 14 Apr 2025Updated 08:55, 15 Apr 2025<\/p>\n

\"Vanessa'sVanessa’s can be found at 38 South Road in Waterloo(Image: Vanessa Lovegrove)<\/p>\n

A mum has confirmed the opening date for her new venue, which she hopes will make a seaside town in Merseyside the \u201cplace to be\u201d. Vanessa Lovegrove, from Crosby<\/a>, is opening a bar under her name on South Road in Waterloo<\/a> within days.<\/p>\n

The 50-year-old said she feels like \u201cthere\u2019s a vibe\u201d that the area is going to become a go-to for many. It comes after the town was previously named as one of the best to live in the UK.<\/a> The former accountant began refurbishing Vanessa\u2019s Bar with husband Stuart in November last year.<\/p>\n

She said since then, she has been crafting the venue into \u201ca place where people can go to chat and socialise, and where service is key\u201d.<\/p>\n

The mum-of-two told the ECHO<\/a>: \u201cIt\u2019s my name on the door, and I want people to feel like they are coming into my house and having a drink with me. The refurb of the bar went really well. My husband and I bought the building in May last year, but refurbed the 2 flats above the venue first, before embarking on the bar fit out.<\/p>\n

\"Vanessa'sVanessa’s is the brainchild of Vanessa Lovegrove and husband Stuart(Image: Vanessa Lovegrove)<\/p>\n

The ground floor wasn’t in a great state when we bought it and it had previously been a children’s party centre, but prior to that it had a long history of being a bar.<\/p>\n

“We have been lucky to work with a great contractor called Daniel James Interiors Ltd who helped us every step of the way. Daniel James has a great pedigree in the hospitality sector and has designed some amazing sites in the North West. From Habbibi in Manchester to the range of Juniper sites, including Hale and Stockton Heath.”<\/p>\n

The look of the venue is distinctly speakeasy with rich red furnishings, glimmers of gold and wood, and striking statement flooring.<\/p>\n

It comes complete with a DJ booth and with plans for live music, the couple have installed a sound system and mood lighting, together with different zones within the venue.<\/p>\n

\"SomeSome of the food offerings from Vanessa’s menu(Image: Vanessa Lovegrove)<\/p>\n

Vanessa said: \u201cIt\u2019ll depend on your mood where you want to go. There are quieter and more chill areas, and then, towards the back, we\u2019ve got a dance floor.\u201d<\/p>\n

The small plates food menu will be mixed, with dishes like lamb koftas<\/a>, grilled halloumi, chicken wings, salads and sandwiches, and specials like whipped ricotta with truffle honey. At the bar, guests will be able to order a variety of beers, wines and champagne, but cocktails will be a \u201chuge feature\u201d.<\/p>\n

The venue will open to the public on Wednesday, April 16. The mum-of-two boys, Max, 21 and Tiberius, 10, said: \u201cMy family has previously owned businesses in Waterloo. My dad had a Wilson’s Lending Library bookshop on St John’s Road for many years.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe venue prides itself on having a speakeasy feel(Image: Vanessa Lovegrove)<\/p>\n

“I’ve worked in finance and procurement for 30 years, and my husband recently retired from his video games business. We were looking for a change of direction, and hospitality has always interested me.<\/p>\n

“South Road has always had a lively going-out scene, and it’s proximity to the beach makes it an ideal daytime venue as well. The area is up-and-coming, and the bar will be at the very heart of that.<\/p>\n

“I worked in bars in Waterloo <\/a>when I was younger, which I really liked because they had a strong sense of community. It was like walking into someone\u2019s front room, and that\u2019s what I want to recreate with Vanessa\u2019s Bar, with an aesthetic that\u2019s very modern now.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Owner Vanessa Lovegrove said the venue has been in the works for several months now 17:06, 14 Apr…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":22008,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8815],"tags":[748,393,786,4884,179,8922,16,15,14145],"class_list":{"0":"post-22007","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-liverpool","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-england","10":"tag-food-and-drink","11":"tag-great-britain","12":"tag-liverpool","13":"tag-liverpool-bars","14":"tag-uk","15":"tag-united-kingdom","16":"tag-waterloo"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114342061937522318","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22007","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22007"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22007\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22008"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22007"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22007"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22007"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}