Award winning Lobby 1867 bar celebrates its third anniversary

The bar, which is named after the year the Grade II listing building was built, was bought by former teacher Layla Baker just before Christmas in December 2019.

Layla, 46, had worked in education for 20 years but decided she wanted to do ‘something a bit different’ whilst she had the opportunity.

Despite the challenges the last three years have presented in the hospitality sector, Layla says the bar has gone from strength to strength.

Layla said: “It was a huge career change. I wanted to do something a little bit different. This space had such great potential that I went for it.

“I was shut down before I had the chance to get going, really. But we’ve gone from strength to strength. We’ve got the pavement licence, which has been a real winner in the summer.

"And we also work really closely with Wakefield Theatre Royal – which is opposite the bar – and Venue 23, and offer a 10 per cent discount for anyone going to a gig at either of these venues.”

The bar prides itself on being stylish and modern, serving a wide selection of drinks, whilst maintaining the heritage feel of the building’s interior and exterior.

Layla said: “When my husband and I go out with a group of friends, we have trouble finding a place which meets all of our needs. Somebody may want a real ale, somebody else might want a glass of wine and another person would want an Italian lager, for example.

"I wanted this bar to provide good quality offerings for a range of people. It isn’t a niche bar – it isn’t a real ale pub or a wine bar, it is a bar where people can come have a good glass of wine, a gin, a good cocktail, an IPA or a rum, which is really on trend at the minute.”

The bar was also part of Wakefield’s famous Rhubarb Festival and won ‘Best Cocktail’ on the Rhubarb Food and Drink Trail.

And the bar won ‘Best Evening Hospitality’ by Wakefield BID Awards 2022.

“We were in competition with a lot of other good bars in Wakefield,” Layla said.

"But we were absolutely chuffed to be given that award by Wakefield BID. It was a personal pat on the back on for us, as in the middle of launching the bar and surviving through the pandemic, I found out that I was pregnant.

"I was doing table service eight months pregnant because people couldn’t go to the bar!”, she added.

The cost of living crisis has impacted the bar, but Layla has managed to keep prices down for customers, so far.

She said: “The cost of living crisis is a challenge, but we’ve tried to absorb most of the costs ourselves and not put most of our prices up.

“It is a hit as we are independent – it is just myself and I do not have a brewery backing – but we are doing this as we are trying to look after our customers. We have a great customer base with lots of regulars.”