City restaurant says 'this isn't goodbye' as it closes its doors

A city centre restaurant has told customers “this isn’t goodbye” as it shut its doors.

Manuka, currently located on Duke Street, took to Instagram to tell its followers the Australasian-inspired venue would be moving location. The venue has yet to disclose where exactly but did reveal it would still be in the city centre. The photo, which was accompanied by the caption “See you soon Liverpool”, read: “Don’t worry this isn’t goodbye, please bear with us while we move to our brand new city centre location.”

The news comes months after the popular restaurant revealed a major rebrand in October. Owner Christakis Georgiou made a name for himself in Liverpool with his titular restaurant chain, best known for its radio jingle.

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Before opening Christakis restaurants on Duke Street and Aigburth and later a stall in the Baltic Market, Christakis previously worked in some of Liverpool's most well-known restaurants, including Caesar's Palace.

Over two decades on, the Christakis brand has built up a loyal customer base, with many getting to know the owner, his wife Francesca and their sons and grandchildren. Christakis met wife Francesca, who's from Liverpool but is half Cypriot on her dad's side, when she moved to Cyprus at age 17.

Last year saw Christakis transform his Duke Street restaurant into "an Australasian-inspired neighbourhood hangout," serving up breakfasts, brunch dishes, wines and more. The ECHO previously spoke with Christakis as he embarked on his new business venture - Manuka.

He told the ECHO: "We did really well in the first year as Christakis and then