Aiden Byrne pulls out of Salford pub development to focus on Church Green

Chef Aiden Byrne will no longer be involved with the development of the Black Friar pub in Salford, according to Manchester Confidentials.

Byrne told the publication lockdown had been an “opportunity to take a long hard look at where we are. Do we spend the next five to 10 years diluting what we’ve got to offer over two sites and be extremely nervous about whether we can sustain that? Or do we pour all our efforts into the site that we’ve got and make it great again? My wife and our family have got everything we need on our doorstep and it’s probably one of the best decisions I’ve ever made really.”

Instead, Byrne will be focusing on his Church Green pub in Lymm, Cheshire, which is set to reopen on Saturday.

Located at the entrance way to a new residential scheme called Local Blackfriars, the Black Friar was due to undergo a £2m transformation. Byrne was working with Simon Ismail, founder and director of Manchester property developer Salboy, and Lee McCarren of construction business Domis, to oversee the renovation of the Grade II-listed, 19th-century pub.

Byrne closed Restaurant MCR, formerly Manchester House, as the result of the difficulties of operating under a two-month rolling lease that made it challenging to invest in the site.

The chef had left Manchester House in 2017 to join D&D London's 20 Stories, also in Manchester, after five years of overseeing the then Living Ventures-owned restaurant. Following Manchester House being placed into administration in 2018, Byrne announced a return to the site with private investors funding the relaunch.