New £2.5m gastropub in Wirral on course to open in January 2023 after a ‘huge’ response from local people saw 60 vacancies filled. Tony McDonough reports

Owners of a new £2.5m gastropub in Wirral say they were overwhelmed with the response to an appeal for staff.

Despite the current high demand for workers in the hospitality sector The Manor in Greasby saw more than 100 people attend two recruitment days. Now 60 people from Greasby and the surrounding areas have been offered jobs at the venture.

In July family-run Nelson Hotels & Inns announced it was to open its first restaurant in Merseyside. It said it was investing £2.5m to convert a 17th century manor into a new gastropub.

A previous restaurant business at the site, called The Manor Greasby, closed early in 2020. Nelson already owns and operates The Pheasant Inn at Burwardsley, The Fishpool Inn at Delamere, The Bear’s Paw in Warmingham and the Grosvenor Pulford Hotel & Spa at Pulford just outside Chester.

This new venture at Greasby will accommodate up to 160 diners. It will also include a ‘wedding barn’ for celebrations of up to 80 guests.

Following interviews conducted across the two days by senior members of the Nelson team, offer were made for all the vacancies. These included both part-time and full-time roles within front-of-house, kitchen roles at all levels, restaurant management, runners and waiting staff.

Neil Armstrong, group food and beverage operations director at Nelson Hotels & Inns, said: “The response from the local attendees during our recent recruitment drive was fantastic.

“We are building a strong restaurant and kitchen team ready for our opening this winter and plan to organise on-site training days for all of our new starters.”

According to the business the response to The Manor’s opening has been positive locally and regionally. A number of attendees of the recruitment day reportedly expressed the view that the venue was needed in the area.

Nelson director Andrew Nelson added: “It’s great to see that local residents are excited for us to open and looking forward to supporting our Wirral venture. Many have been following the refurbishment across social media throughout the year and are really excited to see the completed venue.

“It’s an understandably difficult time all-round for businesses within the hospitality industry but we are lucky to have seen such incredible local support so far. We’re glad that we can offer people of all ages within the area with exciting, new job opportunities in return.”

Vacancies for various kitchen roles, including senior positions, at The Manor are currently still available. For more information or to enquire about a role contact George Vallance at recruitment@nelsonhotels.co.uk