Founders of the Italian Club restaurant brand in Liverpool relaunch their Italian bakery, that closed during COVID, in a new city centre location. Tony McDonough reports

Restaurant entrepreneurs Rosaria Crolla and Maurizio Pellegrini have relocated and relaunched their Liverpool city centre Italian bakery.

Rosaria and Maurizio are best known for their popular Bold Street restaurants, The Italian Club and The Italian Club Fish. Seven years ago they opened The Italian Club Bakery in Newington. However, it had to close to retail customers during the pandemic.

Now the outlet has reopened in a more prominent home in Duke Street. It offers a selection of freshly-made baked goods including focaccia, rolls, pastries as well as sweets including croissants, eclairs, choux buns and desserts.

It will supply external events as part of its outside catering arm and create celebration cakes – all under one roof. Customers can tuck into a bowl of authentic Italian pasta paired with a glass of wine.

Similar to many hospitality ventures, its previous incarnation suffered due to the COVID pandemic, remaining closed to the public while servicing the team’s restaurants as a bread and cake laboratory. Now, it’s making a comeback.

Rosaria said: “The Italian Club Bakery was sorely missed by our customers and when the opportunity of the Duke Street site came up, we just knew this was where we wanted to make our new home.

“We’ve made Bold Street our home away from home for almost two decades and we were keen to expand and experience a new location that offers a different atmosphere and perspective.

“Our entire team is so grateful for all the love and support we’ve received with our restaurants and know that people have high expectations of us because of that. We hope our new bakery will exceed those expectations.”

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This once derelict site was stripped back before being restored. Crumbling walls have been freshly insulated, replastered, and painted in a calming off-white shade, summoning the feel of a real Italian cafe.

Rosaria added: “We’re so excited and happy to finally be opening our doors and welcoming people back to the smallest of The Italian Club family in a much bigger way.”

The Italian Club Bakery can be found at 43 Duke Street, Liverpool, L1 5AP and is open Wednesday to Saturday from 8.30pm until 4.30pm.