Owner Gary Williams has long wanted to run his own bar
16:40, 04 Jan 2025Updated 16:40, 04 Jan 2025
Martin Bos and Gary Williams, owners of new bar In Den Engel(Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)
A new bar serving more than 100 beers is enticing drinkers from across Merseyside. Found on Liverpool Road, in Ainsdale, In Den Engel opened on December 14, focussing on serving quality beer from Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands that people may not usually find in their local pubs and bars.
It is a collaboration between recently-retired civil servant Gary Williams, 61, his wife Sue Williams, 65, and their business partners Martin and Pam Boss, who run popular beer bar The Barrel House in Birkdale. Gary has been interested in Belgian beer for decades and has long harboured ambitions to own his own bar.
Speaking about opening In Den Engel, Gary, who lives in Ainsdale, told the ECHO: “I’ve had quite a varied career – I worked in local law enforcement for a number of years. Then my last job, which I retired from a couple of weeks ago, was working for the civil service as a nationality trainer, working on training to deliver nationality law for a number of years.
“But it’s nice for us to branch out on our own and try to do something to give a little bit back to the community but also make a living. My wife and I originally thought about it around ten or fifteen years ago, when the craft beer boom was happening.
“We thought about it but our current partners opened The Barrel House in Birkdale. We had thought about opening one in Birkdale, but when they opened it, we thought it didn’t look like it was going to happen for us. But with the passing of time it has. We’ve got the business that we were looking for.”
In Den Engel offers 113 different bottled beers including German pilsners, strong Belgian ales, wheat beers and rare finds from across the continent. It also has 14 different beer taps, six of which are currently serving Belgian beers – Gary’s favourites.
Inside In Den Engel(Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)
About his bar’s approach, Gary said: “I’ve had an interest in Belgian beer for the last 30-odd years. I don’t have a background in hospitality, I’ve done a number of different jobs over the years, but I’ve always had an abiding love of Belgian beer. Over the past few years, we became friends with Martin Bos and his wife Pam who have The Barrel House in Birkdale. So we went into partnership with them.
“We have 113 different beers in bottles and we have 14 different taps – six of which are Belgian beers. We’ve got beers from Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and French Flanders – so it’s quite the range really. It’s a unique opportunity for people in Ainsdale to try different things. I think it’s definitely something the area needed.”
“We’ve seen how The Barrel House has been warmly accepted into Birkdale over the last ten years. We’re not trying to compete with anybody in Ainsdale, we’re just trying to offer something slightly different.
“But we also do great coffee from Joe Black’s in Liverpool, teas and soft drinks. We’ve also got a number of gluten-free and alcohol-free options. It’s trying to give people a chance to try different things.”
The wide range of bottled and canned beers at In Den Engel(Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)
The bar’s name translates to ‘The Angel’ and is a homage to the café/bar Den Engel in Antwerp – the feel of which Gary has tried to replicate. Found opposite Miller & Carter on Liverpool Road, the bar’s unit used to be an interior design shop and Gary and his team spent 14 weeks converting it with their own interior design to create its European style.
However, most important to Gary is the beer. He wants to make sure In Den Engel serves the best drinks possible and he thinks that is his bar’s main draw.
He explained: “The best thing about our bar is the quality of the products – the quality of the beer that we sell and the variation. We wouldn’t sell something that we wouldn’t happily drink ourselves – we think that’s the thing that we’re most proud of.
“We’ve had people travel up from Liverpool already – we’re only ten minutes’ walk from the railway station, so people tend to get off and walk up. People have said they’ve got the train from Liverpool because of this place. We hope word is spreading now. We want to let people know that we’re here.”
In Den Engel is found at 636 Liverpool Road, Ainsdale, PR8 3BH. It is open from 10am to 11pm seven days a week.