A family who owns an Italian restaurant is hoping for a 'busy Easter weekend' to celebrate its recent outside refurbishment.

Vercelli restaurant in Hexham has added extra capacity for punters to enjoy live music and its pizza.

The Italian restaurant opened in April 2017 and is ran by executive chef Jordan Dodwell, front of house manager Susan Dodwell and secretary Alison Armstrong, who are all from Hexham and surrounding areas.

"The outside area has always had seating however we have always gone for a simple approach, with basic tables and chairs," Susan said.

"As these were starting to look dated and old we decided to look at new seating options.

"As we discussed further the newly fitted booths seemed like the best option. Not only does it look more stylish it also increases how many customers we can sit at one time.

"We can now seat 64 extra people to eat and up to 72 people for just drinks. As well as the fitted booths, we have new tables and chairs out there.

"We feel it has given the Vercelli garden a much fresher and modern look yet, in keeping with our current Vercelli style. With fitted heaters and canopies above the booths it makes the perfect place to enjoy a pizza and cocktail even when the weather isn't on our side."

The garden has now opened to the public with a few sampling of what it would be like in warmer weather.

Susan said:" At first we only publicised the new rear garden on social media and have had fantastic feedback/ comments from customers and several private messages.

"Our garden opened for the first time on Saturday with a few people taking advantage of the dry weather.

"We are hoping for a busy Easter weekend with live music on Friday and Saturday. Let's hope the weather is on our side."