The restaurant site is set to open as something completely different very soon
15:06, 14 Apr 2026Updated 15:08, 14 Apr 2026
Steven Gerrard and Paul Adams
A new venue is set to open this summer, breathing new life into a restaurant space that was once-owned by a famous face. Warehouse Arts Centre will become home to a wide range of live music, arts and creativity, set across four floors on West Street in Southport town centre.
The new brand takes its name from the iconic former Warehouse restaurant, which occupied the site several years ago and was a popular place to be seen by local people and celebrities alike. Liverpool FC legend Steve Gerrard – who later part-owned the restaurant – often spoke about it in interviews as his favourite place to eat.
The restaurant originally opened in 1995 by Southport businessman Paul Adams, who also owned boutique hotel The Vincent. However, Gerrard wasn’t bought into the Warehouse until 2010.
At the time the Reds’ star said: “If you look back at any interviews I have done where they have asked me about my favourite restaurant – and I have done a lot over the years – I have always said the Warehouse.
Work is taking place to create the new Warehouse Arts Centre in Southport.(Image: Bertie Cunningham Southport BID )
“I have been eating there for years because I love the food and the atmosphere, so it is genuinely exciting to become its co-owner with Paul.
“This is not a theme bar, it’s about great food, great surroundings and making it a place that people really want to come back to. This is my first venture in the restaurant trade, but I think it’s important to also say that my priorities are, and always will be, on the football pitch.”
Gerrard’s involvement was followed by a £250,000 refurbishment of the restaurant’s interior. In 2012, the owners celebrated when the West Street restaurant was awarded two AA Rosettes. The restaurant closed its doors in April 2015, with owner Paul then revealing he wanted to concentrate his energy on developing the ‘Vincent’ brand.
Now, a decade on, the site is to be completely transformed from a restaurant into a venue that prides itself on supporting Southport’s “very rich and diverse arts and cultural scene”.
Inside the Warehouse Restaurant in Southport
Behind the initiative are Ella, Spud and Yvette Cooper, owners of Cooper’s Bar on Leicester Street, working alongside Andrew Portersmith and Stephanie Portersmith of the not-for-profit organisation Music Stuff, and a dedicated team from Tides Out Studios.
The Warehouse Arts Centre is not open yet, but construction work is already taking place. The venue has also already been praised in Parliament.
Southport MP Patrick Hurley told the House of Commons in February: “May I take this opportunity to commend the outstanding work of the team behind Coopers Bar in Southport for all the work they’ve done to support the grassroots music scene in the town. They are now expanding their offering by opening a new venue on West Street.”
Mr Hurley then asked the speaker for permission to hold a debate about grassroots music venues across the country and how “places like Coopers Bar can be properly recognised.”
The Coopers said: “It’s not every day your business gets mentioned in the House of Commons. We are happy our hard work is being recognised, and we will continue to dedicate our time to keeping the grassroots music scene alive in our home town.
The former Warehouse restaurant on West Street in Southport
“We are so excited about our big move into The Warehouse Arts Centre. We will be filling all four floors of the building, which will be an exciting new space for live music, arts and more.
“It will still have the same great atmosphere as Coopers Bar, while also being able to offer even more than we do now. There is nothing else like this in the whole area, and so many talented musicians, artists, and creatives in Southport who are looking forward to what we’re building.
“We need to put Southport back on the map as the cultural centre for the North West, where things are going on all the time and we’re attracting people into our town from all over. We are feeling very nervous and very excited. It’s a big risk doing this, but we have a brilliant team behind the project, and we’re all determined we just want to go for it.”
The team said there will be a new stage built and Cooper’s Music will be relocating inside from Union Street. Alongside this, there will be ‘Modulart’ Art Gallery where local artists will be able to apply to exhibit their work for free, on a rolling basis.
Musicians will be able to utilise the new Tides Out recording studio and there will be a shop selling arts and crafts. The schedule will be complete with wellbeing and yoga events and there will be teaching rooms and video editing rooms.
