Above: flick through some images

The Blue Bicycle coffee shop at 10 The Cross, Neston, has proved to be a cup half full and not half empty sort of a place during the pandemic.

In the downtime of lockdowns, the owners took their premises by the scruff of the neck and created a courtyard area in its outside space.

This can cater for people taking advantage of the April 12 easing of restrictions which allowed people to gather for food and drink outdoors in groups of six, or more if from two households.

The Blue Bicycle seems to be the definition of a family business.

Co-director Ann McDonagh said: "In a nutshell, my husband Paul, who has more than 30 years' catering experience and is a former Head Chef of a hotel in Chester, always wanted to build a business of his own.

"We started out in 2019 with some big dreams, and like to think we made our mark on Neston and the area with our high quality coffee, fresh food and homemade cakes. We are really, truly passionate about what we do and we soon began to build a good reputation and a following of loyal customers.

"Then came COVID-19 and the hospitality trade was plunged into difficult times. Of course this was really worrying, but we decided we had to do something positive, so when The Blue Bicycle was closed we put countless hours into creating an outside space which is great now, and will be a wonderful asset to the shop in the future when life returns to normal.

"Basically, we thought, 'what can we do with the bin storage area?' Better to have people in it rather than bins! So we had a stonemason rebuild the walls, resurfaced the floor with cobbles, built a gazebo with heating and lights - and I was in charge of adding lots of plants. Benches were the final addition, and hey presto!

"So here we all are," added Ann. "I look after all the admin, finance and HR tasks, while our daughter, Sophie, is front of house manager, and then there's our son, Daniel, who's an IT technician and therefore looks after all website and tech issues - which is very handy.

"Between us, with all our knowledge of the hospitality trade and complementary skills, we really want to add something great to the town in which we live and which we love."

To avoid disappointment, it's recommended that you book at The Blue Bicycle.

All you need to do to reserve places is call 0151 336 3970, or email [email protected]