I'd never poured a pint in my life but now I run a bar that catches the eye

Jonathan Smallwood had never poured a pint in his life when he decided to open his own bar. Previously a solicitor, Jonathan, 41, from Walton, had begun to work part-time and decided to follow his passion for beer to return to full-time work.

He set up the North Park Tavern, a craft beer bar on Stanley Road in Bootle, nearly three-and-a-half years ago, wanting to bring a new type of venue to the Sefton town. Found between a barber shop and a Chinese takeaway, the bar's constantly-changing range currently includes German lager Paulaner, as well as plenty of beers from local breweries Black Lodge, Neptune and Colbier.

About the bar's origins, Jonathan told the ECHO: "Prior to opening this bar, I'd never poured a pint in my life. My background was law - I was a solicitor and I used to specialise in claims against the state and civil claims.

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"A few years ago I was working part-time, just doing consultancy work and I thought I needed to go back to full-time work and what do I really like - beer. So I thought I would open my own bar.

"It's got to be good beer. I enjoy all different styles of beer, there is no style of beer that I don't drink.

"We rotate our beers massively. In reality there's only one permanent beer that I have on and it's the house lager - a North Park Pils. That's a proper Belgian pilsner but everything else rotates, that's what we're about - it's all guest ales and weird and wacky things.

"I definitely felt this was something that Bootle was missing. That was one of the reasons why I set up around here - there's nowhere that specialises in craft beer or that does specialist beers, so it seemed like a good idea."

Bootle has lost a number of pubs and venues in recent years. Two of its most famous pubs The Mons and The Merton have closed their doors amid challenging times for the hospitality industry.

Old school pubs like the Cat & Fiddle and the Jawbone Tavern are keeping the flag flying, while the Lock & Quay has become an incredibly popular venue and boasts a huge beer garden. But Jonathan thinks that there are a number of customers who want something different and more intimate, like a micropub.

Several micropubs and taprooms have popped up across Merseyside in recent years - including The Little Taproom on Aigburth Road, Cask in Stoneycroft and The Lazy Landlord in Liscard. Jonathan thinks these venues stand out and attract customers who want something distinctive, where they will find beer that they've not had before.

He explained: "We've got a good group of regulars and the atmosphere is a bit more laid-back. We're very relaxed, especially with the types of beer we do, it's not like these mad sports bars. It's a different vibe - a completely different vibe.

"I just want to do something different around here. I want to offer something different from your usual Carling, Moretti and that sort of thing.

"The décor stands out. I'm in the process of decorating - very slowly I might add as I'm doing it all myself - but I just wanted something warm and bright. I thought these colours and a Mexican theme, why not?

"We are the only bar around here that does this craft ale and real ale. If you want to have a pint that's decent and different, that's what sets up apart. We're friendly, we're dog-friendly, it's a very laid back atmosphere and we never have any trouble in here."

By offering something different, the tavern has garnered a band of regulars searching for craft beer. It also gets busy when there are events at the nearby Salt & Tar concert venue.

Jonathan said: "One thing I noticed is that when there's gigs on at Salt & Tar, we've had a lot of out-of-towners. I think people from further afield, if they're googling bars around here, we catch their eye because we are quite alternative compared with the other bars.

"If you want something a bit different between town and Waterloo and Crosby, there's not a lot to choose from. Bootle has lost a lot of pubs - it's sad.

"So we just want to keep it going, we want to keep doing what we're doing, just making sure that people in this area have got that alternative. From the city centre up to Crosby, it's a bit of a beer desert."

The North Park Tavern is found on Stanley Rd, Bootle - L20 5AB