Vyne bar and restaurant in Friargate, Preston forced to close three months after opening

Vyne Bar and Kitchen in Friargate says the current roadworks taking place in the road and on Ringway are making it ‘impossible’ to function. Run by Serena Baxter and Paul Harrison, who also own Lonely People and In:Libra, the Vyne team took to Facebook to explain their decision to pause until Lancashire County Council complete the work.

They said: “A difficult decision to make but unfortunately we would like to inform everyone Vyne will be closing for the time being until the ongoing roadworks on Friargate are finished. The transforming Ringway and north Friargate development was due to be completed Spring 2023. One of the main reasons we opened Vyne in the first instance was because we saw potential in the location. The works however are currently at a halt with no prospect of help from the council. The street has become more undesirable, uninviting, not accessible, unattractive and impossible to work with. We wanted to give our customers the best possible experience at Vyne but currently this is not what we envisaged. We want to reopen when the time is right and we can deliver exactly what we set out to."

A spokesperson for Lancashire County Council said: “The Transforming Friargate North and Ringway scheme fundamentally changes the way we travel into the Preston city centre and makes it an attractive destination for residents and visitors to enjoy, bringing it up to date with other modern cities. This in turn will drive growth and prosperity right across the city, generating more potential customers for businesses, particularly along the northern end of Friargate.”

They added: “Unfortunately, we simply cannot achieve all of this without creating some temporary disruption, despite our best efforts to minimise it. We really appreciate how patient our business community has been and we ask that you please bear with us while we navigate this final stage of construction.”

Located on the site of a former hair salon at 133 Friargate, Vyne Bar and Kitchen opened for business on Friday, March 10, promising to be a modern bar specialising in small plates, cocktails, international wines and sunday roasts. It is not known when it will open again.