On a normal day at Cafe Tabac, Elaine Clarke would see a cast of the city’s actors and writers huddled around a pot of tea - tinkering with the words to a new film or book.
“Everyman Bistro and Cafe Tabac, that was the hub,” Elaine tells the ECHO, speaking about the two institutions that have had a strong hand in shaping a large part of Liverpool's modern cultural identity. Elaine herself was central to maintaining the “hub” at Cafe Tabac, taking over the business from her aunty Rita at the age of 23 in 1990, but she has also played a central role in making Ropewalks and Concert Square the “destination” it has become today.
Three decades later she has now been recognised for her contribution to the city with the award of an OBE in the new year honours list. It’s an accolade she says she’s “overwhelmed” to receive and one that draws together a life’s work at the heart of the city’s hospitality sector.
READ MORE: Raves, craft ale and the ‘abandoned’ square that shaped modern Liverpool
When Elaine first started working in Café Tabac in 1984, the city was dominated by pubs, clubs and bistros - places defined by “home cooking” and led by “cooks rather than chefs” who catered to Liverpool’s up and coming creatives. Inside Tabac, it wasn’t rare to find screenwriter Alan Bleasdale or playwright Willy Russell poring over new works.
But in 1991 Elaine moved on from the warm and soulful surroundings of Tabac to head up Baa Bar, a new venture spearheaded by then owner of Liverpool Palace shopping arcade Tom Bloxham, along with business partners Jonathan and Miles Falkingham. The first bar to gain a 2am licence, Elaine described Baa Bar as a “trailblazer” that found a new middle ground between the community feel of pubs and late night offerings of the city’s nightclubs.
As the first flag in the ground, Ropewalks is now defined by similar bars which thousands flock to , but it wasn’t an overnight change once its doors were opened. Elaine, now Baa Bar CEO, told the ECHO: “When we opened Baa Bar in 1991, I was the only bar there. It was like tumbleweeds, nothing else around.
“Then everyone started opening bars after that. [So] In 1997 we challenged the bars.”
The ‘challenge’ laid down to competition was the opening of RococoModo, Liverpool’s first concept lounge bar on Concert Square - an area that had been left derelict only a few years before. In tandem with regeneration company Urban Splash, co-founded by Baa Bar’s owners, the face of the area was changed dramatically with the construction of apartments at the centre of a growing and confident Ropewalks area.
RococoModo was the first in the square to gain a pavement licence, meaning it could operate outside. This is now a key feature of the area which is usually first on the list for tourists or football fans visiting the city.
Reflecting on the success of Concert Square and growth of Ropewalks, Elaine said: “I never thought it would get so busy. It became the place to go, a destination.
“People felt the city was somewhere to invest in. Winning the capital of culture too, all that put us on the map. Concert Square was just off Bold Street and the centre of it all really.”
Baa Bar grew quickly as a brand and spread out to other cities across the country. Elaine also headed up the opening of Fredrik’s on Hope Street which has become a home to Liverpool’s Jazz scene.
Asked what defines a night out in the city, Elaine said “the people”, adding: “[In Liverpool], Everybody loves to party. Everyone loves to have a good time.
"Liverpool people, the personalities, the sense of humour - everyone from all over the world comes to Liverpool and knows about Liverpool. We’ve got to keep capitalising on the assets that we have.”
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