Dad moves 3,000 miles to Merseyside after 'instantly' falling in love

A man swapped the Empire State Building for New Brighton Beach after falling in love with a Merseyside woman. Cory Isham moved to Wirral from New York to be with the mum of his children, Germaine, after they met while he was on an international field placement.

The dad-of-two was in the final semester of his bachelor's degree when he did a placement at a learning disability centre just outside of Bangor, North Wales. Here, he “hit it off straight away” with restaurant manager, Germaine.

The psychology graduate told the ECHO: “We clicked instantly. We had our first date at a Greek Taverna with a few bottles of wine and a lovely meal.

"That was it, we were connected ever since. We lived together after that first date and married that year. It was all within eight months of knowing each other.”

After years of travelling back and forth, Cory decided to pick up his roots and settle in New Brighton permanently. He has now been here for just under a decade but it hasn’t come without its challenges.

The 40-year-old said: “I love it here now, it’s absolutely great. We got married in Chester in 2001 and decided to move back to Buffalo [New York] right away basically.

"We stayed there for 14 years and raised our kids, Mina and Elliot. It got to a point where we wanted the kids to have half of their childhood here in the UK.

"But at first, it was really tough for me as a dad. Immigration procedures meant Geramine and the kids came here first and then I had two years of paperwork and headache I had to get through. We barely got to see each other so it was very difficult. But it’s a decision I’m really glad we made.”

Having made the seaside resort of New Brighton his home, Cory took a risk and opened a restaurant, Nickel City, having never been a chef before. Located just up the hill on Seabank Road, you will find the authentic American bistro serving dishes “with a twist”.

While the menu is stacked with specials, it’s the venue's sourdough pizzas that have everyone talking - having been named the best in Wirral 2024 by locals.

The former health and social care worker added: “We’ve always done cooking so I wanted to bring something different to the area and it’s been a big hit since. I’ve taken some of the things that have been a great success over the pond, put my twist on them and created some really unique dishes on the menu. I love experimenting and creating revolving specials to mix things up.”