Historic Liverpool landmark tens of thousands walk past each day to be turned into New York-style bar

One of Liverpool’s ‘finest early buildings’ could be transformed into a New York-inspired cocktail bar and restaurant. The historic Lyceum building at the bottom of Bold Street is the subject of an application to upgrade and change use to a brand new dining venue.

The Grade II listed site has been identified by Arc Inspirations Ltd to grow their brand which already boasts more than a dozen locations across the country. The firm has already worked on a number of vacant and redundant buildings, including other listed sites in Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds.

Should the proposals be approved by Liverpool Council’s planning committee, three floors could be repurposed into what the applicant has described as a ‘glamorous’ cocktail bar.

Lyceum stands next to the entrance to Liverpool Central, which is the city’s busiest train station, with 11.4 million entries and exits into the station per year. The NeoclassicalGrade II* listed building has been home to various bars and restaurants over the years, it was once a branch of the Co-operative Bank and as of May 2024 housed a Chinese restaurant and a miniature golf and bar venue called One Below.

Built between 1800-02 by William Slater and to the designs of Thomas Harrison, the Lyceum building is of stone ashlar construction in a Chaste Greek Revival style and as noted by N. Pevsner is “one of the finest early buildings of Liverpool.”

The building was originally designed to house two separate institutions, the Liverpool Library – a private subscription library founded in 1758 and one of the oldest in the country - and a news room. In a design and access statement, Arc said it had been searching for a suitable location in the city to grow the brand and have identified the site as the perfect location for the Manahatta brand – “a glamorous cocktail bar that brings the exciting unmistakeable beat of New York to the UK.”

The bar will be spread across the lower ground, ground and mezzanine floor levels of the building, with a new mezzanine floor also proposed between lower ground and ground floor levels. The entrance will be taken from Bold Street.

The main bar areas will be positioned at ground and mezzanine floor levels with customer toilets, staff, and other back of house areas/ storage located at lower ground level. Arc Inspirations intend to operate a full menu from 9am to 9pm, with a terminal hour of 2am, typical with other Manahatta units.

Earlier this year, part of the building which backs on to Liverpool Central station, was taken on by One Under which opened a new crazy golf facility. It is owned by husband and wife team Angus and Vivienne Wright who also operate five Jungle Rumble and three One Under mini golf sites across the country.

In their statement, Arc set out their vision for the remainder of the building which previously served as a Co-operative Bank and latterly a Chinese restaurant until August last year. It said: “This new proposed bar will ensure that this prominent, Grade II* listed building can be brought back into a productive economic use that will contribute to the vitality and viability of this part of the City Centre.”