Seel & Slater, a new New York-inspired restaurant and late-night cocktail bar, will open in Liverpool's Ropewalks on Friday, October 9. The two-part concept from Open Restaurant Group takes over the former Wreck Bistro site, which the group acquired earlier this month.
Former Wreck Bistro team retained
The Grade II-listed building will be transformed into a 45-cover restaurant, bar and grill upstairs, with a separate low-lit cocktail bar planned for the lower ground floor later this year. Bookings for the first service are now open.
Open Restaurant Group co-founder and CEO Sam Morgan said the company was pleased to expand its Liverpool portfolio with Seel & Slater. The former Wreck Bistro team has been retained, allowing staff to continue their roles as part of the new concept.
Menu and inspiration
Led by award-winning chef Andrew Sheridan alongside Sam and Emma Morgan, the venue takes inspiration from New York's Italian-American restaurants, Manhattan steakhouses and late-night bars. Its name comes from the two streets surrounding the site, reflecting the idea of New York's street corners and meeting points.
The upstairs restaurant will open seven days a week from 8am, offering breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner and late-night drinks. The menu will focus on prime grilled cuts, handmade pasta, generous sharing dishes and New York-inspired favourites, including a pastrami doughnut, dry-aged ribeye known as 'The Don', lobster lasagne and New York cheesecake brûlée. The menu will change seasonally, with ingredients sourced through the group's network of suppliers.
Expansion for Open Restaurant Group
Andrew Sheridan has developed the menu following the success of Restaurant 8 on Cook Street, which holds three AA Rosettes and is listed in the Michelin Guide. Seel & Slater represents a more relaxed direction for the chef, moving away from Restaurant 8's formal style towards an all-day destination restaurant.
The lower ground floor will eventually become a separate cocktail bar inspired by the jazz clubs and late-night drinking spots of 1940s New York. Seel & Slater will be Open Restaurant Group's second Liverpool venue and ninth site overall, expanding its presence across the North West and North Wales.
