Following on from its debut in Duke Street Market in 2021 and the current street food pop-up in Albert Dock, the new restaurant will be located in the city’s Georgian Quarter and will be the first time Barnacle will be a stand-alone restaurant.
Sited in a Grade II listed building that was originally the School For The Blind on Hardman Street and which more recently has become home to Hardman Studios, Barnacle will serve local produce from Merseyside and ‘will tell the story of field to fork’. The restaurant and bar will reflect Liverpool’s storied history as a port city and the culinary inspirations which have found their way here over time.
The venue will have a dining room and separate bar area as well as a terrace, with its design taking cues from the area’s maritime past, with rope detailing from the ceilings and maritime artwork.
“We can’t wait to open our doors and show people our new home,” says restaurant director Harry Askew. “We really feel Barnacle has now found its true home in a unique building which offers several spaces to dine, drink and socialise in.”
The restaurant takes its name from Paul Askew’s father, who was known as Captain Barnacle Bill Askew when he sailed the world on the Blue Star lines.
“Our new home is a Grade-II listed building and originally part of The Old Blind School. It’s a historic place, part neo-classical and part art-deco, imbued by Victorian grandeur and with the Philharmonic Hall and Everyman Theatre as our neighbours,” says Paul Askew, who is also chef patron and owner of The Art School restaurant in Liverpool.
“At Barnacle we offer something for everyone, from a quick drink to a full dining experience, to sharing a bottle of wine and catching up with friends, to popping in for flowers on the way home from work. Our bar is a wonderful, cosy space with the addition of what I like to call our secret snug which seats just twelve people. And back across the lobby, the main dining space is a joy; we’ve longed for an environment like this to serve lunch and dinner, and finally we have the perfect venue.”
“My dad was Captain Barnacle Bill Askew, and he sailed the world on the Blue Star lines. His travels inspired me when I was young and along with my mother, they set me on my culinary path decades ago. I always think of barnacles on the hulls of the great ships which once sailed to and from Liverpool and how so much culinary knowledge and experience ended up here and helped shape the dynamic range of flavours, styles and secrets from countless far-flung locations.
“And we will proudly tell the story of the city’s food and cultural odyssey through its maritime history at Barnacle, this time from our very own restaurant.”
The bar and lobby will open on 27 September followed by the opening of the restaurant space and the entire ground-floor in October.