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Liverpool Echo

Entertainment

Charlotte Roszko

Much loved Liverpool pubs and restaurants that closed due to cost of living crisis

Covid-19 Frost Burgers

Several much-loved Liverpool pubs and restaurants have been forced to close their doors over the last few months.

The cost of living crisis is having a devastating impact on the hospitality sector, with rising costs meaning some businesses have sadly been unable to survive. Coupled with the impact of the Covid pandemic, many restaurants and bars are being pushed to closure.

So far this year several pubs, bars and restaurants in the city have already closed, with venues warning that more will be at risk during the winter months. The summer has seen the closure of venues such as Santa Chupitos, The Baltic Social and Frost Burgers.

Frost Burgers

Vegan restaurant Frost Burgers closed its doors on September 11. Situated on Wood Street, the venue was known as one of the pioneers of vegan food in the city and was open for four years.

An upstairs flood forced the restaurant to close for two months, before it had to shut its doors due to the pandemic. Frost Burgers was forced to shut its Liverpool and Manchester branches as a result of rising food prices, increased VAT and soaring energy bills.

Manager Kriss Janmejis told ECHO reporter Charlotte Hadfield: "In general there's less people coming in. Obviously people are trying to save their own money. It is energy prices, food prices have gone up, oil has gone up by almost 100%."

Baltic Social

Liverpool city centre bar and restaurant, The Baltic Social, had to close its doors "with a heavy heart" on Tuesday, August 23, citing a number of factors as being responsible for the decision. The Parliament Street-based venue said that the "combination of trying to bounce back post Covid" coupled with "absolutely astronomical increases in energy, food and drink prices" led to the business closing after nine years.

In a message to fans on social media, the team wrote: "We have had a wild and joy filled ride over the last 9 years but like so many independent businesses, these last couple of years have been difficult beyond measure. We don't need to tell you how difficult this industry is at the best of times but a combination of trying to bounce back post covid combined with absolutely astronomical increases in energy, food and drink prices has meant that we are now closing the door for the very last time on what's been our happy and madhouse home for so long."

Santa Chupitos

Slater Street cocktail bar, Santa Chupitos, permanently closed after 13 years of trading. The bar was impacted by the Covid pandemic.

The venue was known for its creative and elaborate cockails, stylish design and relaxed atmosphere. One of the bar's popular menu items was the Pulp Fiction inspired $5 Shake, which came served in a traditional glass milk bottle.

John Ennis, director of Santa Chupitos, said: "We're really sad to see Santas go and have loved watching it evolve and welcome thousands of people since we opened in 2009. Since Covid, things have changed drastically for the hospitality industry - there's been a huge shift in clientele and we recognised that Santas wasn't trading the way it had done pre-Covid."

The Butterfly and The Grasshopper

The Butterfly & The Grasshopper was forced to close "with a heavy heart", stating that it has "never been able to recover from the damage that Covid did." The restaurant, which was based on Oldham Street in the city centre, closed in August.

In a statement on social media, the team wrote: "We built up an incredible reputation for a design, food and drink concept from day 1 that was put together and delivered by an incredibly talented team, but we've never been able to recover from the damage that Covid did to a fledgling business.

"The cost of the operation is now unfortunately too high and you will have noticed we had to regretfully close the kitchen and shorten our trading hours recently. And now we have reached the end, so we will raise a sad but grateful glass and thank all the wonderful staff and patrons that have been a family these past (almost) 3 years."

Vietnom

After opening on Berry Street in January 2020, just two months before the Covid pandemic, popular Vietnamese restaurant Vietnom closed its doors on July 31. Vietnom initially started out as a stall in the Baltic Market, which remains open.

The restaurant said they had been "fighting for survival" during the pressures of Covid and staff shortages and were now "facing massive inflations." In a statement on Instagram stores, the team said: "We came to the conclusion that people won't remember us as individuals for the millions of hours we work, how busy we are and how stressed out we are as people. But people will remember us for playing a role in their lives, how we make them feel and the energy we present."

The team added that it had been "an absolute pleasure and whirlwind of a journey opening our own place". They also praised customers for pulling them through "some of the hardest times" and thanked their "genuinely gorgeous staff".

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