Entrepreneurial chef opens £400k restaurant on Liverpool’s Seel Street

Chef and restaurateur Gary Usher has launched his latest eatery on Liverpool’s Seel Street.

Wreckfish, the fourth restaurant in Gary’s portfolio, was created with the help of a financial injection from Barclays.

The venue broke a record on Kickstarter earlier this year after raising £200k – the largest ever generated for a UK restaurant business on the crowdfunding platform – from Simon Rimmer, Tom Kerridge and several other Michelin-star chefs.

The initial cash boost was then matched with a further £200k from Barclays, used to renovate the premises.

Gary opened his first restaurant, Sticky Walnut, in Chester in January 2011 and went on to establish his second, Burnt Truffle, in Heswall. In September 2016 he opened Hispi in Didsbury.

Gary commented: “I couldn’t be happier to open our fourth restaurant and still can’t believe we’ve made this happen.

“Starting as a pop-up in the derelict building in February, breaking crowdfunding records in May and securing funds from Barclays to complete the project has been a huge challenge but really rewarding.”

He added: “We’re looking forward to the future and any other challenges we may face, which are made all the easier when you have the full backing of your bank.”

Barclays business manager Mike Lockwood led on the deal.

He said: “Gary has proven himself to be highly creative and successful both in and out of the kitchen and Wreckfish is testament to his hard work and tenacious attitude.

“With our industry knowledge and ability to structure the right finance package, Barclays is delighted to help Wreckfish become a reality and support Gary’s ambitious plans – I wish him every success with his latest venture.”

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