New restaurant's website crashes after being inundated by people trying to book

The owners behind two of Merseyside's most popular bars have revealed when they will be opening their third venture.

The team behind Emily's Formby and Liverpool city centre's Brunch and Cocktail Club revealed earlier this year they would be making a third addition to their portfolio with Penelope's in Southport. It came after Emily's Formby became a breakfast and brunch hotspot in north Merseyside, with rave reviews flooding in for the venue on Brows Lane.

Penelope's is located on Rotten Row in Southport, next to Victoria Park, and is easily accessible from both the town centre and Birkdale village. After opening its booking page, the team behind the venue said how the website for the restaurant and bar had crashed in the process.

READ MORE: Live updates as 14-year-old missing after swimming in River Mersey

READ MORE: These are the faces of 50 Merseyside criminals who were jailed during June

In a Facebook post, Penelope's said: "Oops... We've been absolutely BLOWN AWAY by the unprecedented response since we opened bookings, but unfortunately our website has been blown away too!

"We're working hard to get this sorted, but in the meantime don't worry, you can still book a table here - https://bookings.designmynight.com/book...

"This crazy morning has got us even more excited to open our doors on Friday and we want to say the biggest thank you for your phenomenal support… Even if you did crash our website on day one, we wouldn’t have it any other way!"

The venue will be open for customers on Friday, 5 July, with the company being inundated with "hundreds" of messages about the opening date.

A spokesperson previously told the ECHO although a "visual thread" will carry between the venues, Penelope's will have a clear identity of its own. Penelope's will keep with botanical themes but steer towards the more "wild and exotic" plant life, they said.

The venue has also ditched its familiar green colours for a cool, Mediterranean blue interior with porcelain decorations.

Penelope's will launch with an open-fire grill and pizza oven to provide a more extensive evening menu. Diners can also expect an outdoor seating area catering for the warmer months.

Don't miss the biggest and breaking stories by signing up to the Echo Daily newsletter here