Waterlooville restaurant Little Bay Eatery prepares to throw open its doors and breathe life into 'ghost town'

A new eatery is set to open on Queens Parade, Waterlooville, in a bid to bring life back into the town centre branded a ‘ghost town’. Little Bay Eatery will throw open its doors in March and hopes to become a ‘vibrant’ draw to help attract residents back to the once bustling centre.

Business partners, Melanie Humphreys, from Waterlooville, and Peter Exton, from Emsworth, formerly worked at Devilishly Good, in Waterlooville, but decided to take the leap of faith after securing a premises of their own.

‘It’s always been a dream of ours,’ said Melanie. ‘We used to work together and we decided to go it alone to try and get something a bit more vibrant in Waterlooville to bring the community back to the town. It seems to have become a bit of a ghost town.’

The eatery will play host to an array of food choices, a full breakfast menu and a selection of lunch options including paninis, sandwiches, jacket potatoes, homemade hot pots as well as homemade cakes and afternoon teas.

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Next door to Waterlooville Fruit and Veg, the restaurant hopes to utilise its greengrocer neighbours, introducing fresh and local produce into their own dishes.

‘There has been lots of places that have shut down,’ added Melanie. ‘When you actually look around there’s nowhere to sit down and have homemade cakes and good home-cooked food.

‘We’re hoping to attract the community back and get this town back to a pleasant place to visit.’