Crazy Pedro’s: the late night pizza party expansion

What is the history of Crazy Pedro’s? Crazy Pedro’s was born just over seven years ago by myself and co-founders, Ross Mackenzie and Lyndon Higginson. Our first venue opened in November 2014 on Bridge Street in Manchester. Mackenzie, Higginson and I wanted to bring something different to the city and create a venue where people could party until late hours and enjoy the best pizza in town. We worked hard to perfect our pizza dough through rigorous testing to find the now secret recipe that is still used daily in our three venues today. Within two years we had opened our second site in Manchester. In 2016, we launched Crazy Pedro’s in the Northern Quarter, which is based within a basement site under the famous Affleck’s Palace. With two Manchester venues under our belts, we decided it was time to roll out the Pedro’s concept and we decided on a venue in Liverpool, taking over a two-floor 2500 square feet site with a rooftop terrace in November 2017. Pedro’s has always prided itself on connecting with the local hospitality industry, partly due to the late opening hours and being heavily focussed on all things agave. Each site boasts one of the largest tequila and mezcal collections in the UK, and frozen Margaritas play a big part in the Pedro’s experience. We’re a collaborative brand and enjoy working with hospitality partners to create new products for our customers. Pedro’s is famed for its wacky pizza creations and monthly specials – everything from crème eggs to the famous chippy tea pizza with sausage, chips, mushy peas and curry sauce. What brands are currently under The Liars Group? In Manchester, The Liars Group currently operate The Liars Club, a tiki bar which opened in 2011, Cane and Grain, a rum, bourbon and rib joint which opened in 2014, Crazy Pedro’s Bridge Street in 2014 and Crazy Pedro’s Northern Quarter in 2016, The Bay Horse Tavern, a Northern Quarter Pub which opened in 2017 and Science + Industry, an award winning speakeasy cocktail bar in the Northern Quarter. Then we have Crazy Pedro’s in Liverpool which launched in 2017. What is the late night pizza party concept of Crazy Pedro’s, and what inspired this concept? Crazy Pedro’s is a relaxed late-night party bar serving pizza until 4am, seven days a week. The inspiration for the Pedro’s brand came from Higginson whilst on a night out. He sent Ross Mackenzie and I a text explaining the concept, and his ideas and the brand were born from there. This was further strengthened by our love for mezcal and pizza. What has the customer reaction been to Crazy Pedro’s so far? Crazy Pedro’s has been well received, particularly as you can get pizza until late hours. There are not many places which offer late night dining options with music and drink options until the early hours of the morning. We have a very loyal following, to the point that some of our fans even get the Crazy Pedro’s logo tattooed on themselves to show their support for the brand, all on their own doing, and share their visits on social media. Social engagement is huge for us and a great way for us to connect with our supporters and customers. We try to keep them involved in everything that we do – even in what goes on (or off) our menus. What attracted The Liars Group to the particular site at The Custard Factory, and why was the group eyeing up sites in Birmingham? We’ve been looking at sites in Birmingham for several years now. Birmingham is a really vibrant city and we were particularly drawn to the Digbeth area. When the Custard Factory site came up, we thought the building and location fit perfectly with the Pedro’s brand, particularly the street art and vibe of the Digbeth area. How does The Liars Group plan to capitalise on the young crowd in Digbeth, and how will the opening in Birmingham enhance the group’s standing? We work hard to ensure our offering is accessible to everyone. Customers take advantage of our food and drink led offer, such as happy hours and our bottomless pizza bunches available every day of the week. We also have student offers seven days a week at all sites. Adding a fourth Crazy Pedro’s site will help increase awareness of our product as a late-night party venue across the UK. What are the design features of the new site? Birmingham is our biggest site to date with 5,000 square feet across four floors, as well as an outside mezzanine area. It’s a huge project which allows us to fit in all the aspects of a typical Crazy Pedro’s venue, such as neons, skateboards and graffiti art, on a much larger scale. It’s like Crazy Pedro’s on steroids. What is next for Crazy Pedro’s, and The Liars Group as a whole? We are really looking forward to the first full summer of trading without restrictions, leading into the first full festive period. Birmingham is a big focus for us currently and we’ll see where the Pedro’s brand takes us after the city of Birmingham, and hopefully we will be bringing Crazy Pedro’s to a city near you.