York's first secret bar has opened.

As The Press reported, local businessman Joe Moore received planning permission for a private bar in a hidden location off Clifford Street.

Unlike many of the city's bars, The Secret Bar York is only available for bookings - for groups ranging from two to 80.

Owner Joe told The Press: "I've got the holiday apartments above, so the idea was to create something that could service the holiday apartments.

"Anyone that comes in to the apartments upstairs can come down through an internal staircase. We expanded to external bookings, so people can get in touch and then be let in via the intercom. It's just utilising space that wasn't being used."

(Image: Harry Booth) The idea of the secret bar is to cater to groups of people, in what Joe wants to be an exclusive environment.

"People can't just walk in, you have to pre-book, there aren't any flashing signs outside you have to know about it," he said.

"If you go into the city centre with 20 mates, you won't get let in. If you come here we'll let you in as a group and look after you."

For the entire bar to be booked for a private function it requires at least 40 attendees. One such event that Joe hopes will gain traction is a weekly brunch every Saturday.

He said that food catering will be brought in from both Baker Street and Northern Pig.

Inside the bar (Image: Harry Booth) Joe added that the secret bar "might only end up opening up one day a week", as he said the aim is to only cater to the needs of his customers.

"There's a few different things we want to do, whether it be a private function or a business event, we have screens all over and can put what people want on them," he said.

Soon, the bar will have a social media page and website, which Joe says will be the way in which bookings can be made.

He said that after making a booking, groups can choose whether they want music, the VIP room, catering, or even karaoke.