Pop-up restaurant licensing

[CGFR]

I’m looking at starting a evening only pop-up restaurant to operate for 3 months in a restaurant that only opens during the day. My business would be run separately from the existing restaurant via a different company. The host restaurant has a premises licence that covers selling alcohol in the evenings. Is there any way I can make use of the existing premises licence or will I need to apply for a new / separate one? Would seem odd to have two premises licences in place for the same venue. I can’t find anything online that answers this question so am interesting in your thoughts. Thanks.

 

[Mark T Jones]

I'd take a look at the terms of the licence, but for the most part as the name suggests, it covers the premises

You will also need a personal licence

 

[kulture]

I'd take a look at the terms of the licence, but for the most part as the name suggests, it covers the premises

You will also need a personal licence

It’s not that simple. I have a friend who opened a bar in the rear of a fully licensed restaurant premises. They assumed that the licence would cover it. The local licensing officer disagreed. He said that it was a separate business and a separate supervisor. He insisted on a separate licence. I am not 100% sure of the legality of the licence Officer position, but it was cheaper and quicker to apply for a separate licence.

in this case, why not just ask the licensing officer and go from there.

 

[CGFR]

Thanks for the responses. I feared it may not be so simple. Logically it makes sense given that although the premises licence - as it's name suggests - relates to the premises, it's granted to a business with a named designated supervisor. If another business with different staff run from the same site, it makes sense that they should have a separate registration. However, I'm wondering if there are any clever ways around this, eg by employing the designated premises supervisor of the host business in the pop-up business (even if only as a consultant), as it's not feasible for me to get a mirror premises licence in time (it takes at least two months). Anyone got any interesting ideas here?

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

Speak to your local council licensing team.

 

[CGFR]

Thanks Paul. Easier said than done - they will not discuss over the phone and I've emailed them but to no avail. I'm also interested in how I can tactically position this to get the outcome I need. Thanks again.

 

[kulture]

Speak to your local Councillor, ask him/her to chase this up. Find out who is the Chair of the Licencing Committee. Get them involved. Some councils forget that they WORK FOR US.

 

[kulture]

Also consider applying for a TEN https://www.gov.uk/temporary-events-notice
Not ideal, but it may suffice.

 

[CGFR]

Thanks for all the input on this. I did speak with the local licensing team in the end, and they confirmed that I can use the existing premises licence, provided both the licence holder and the DPS give their permission, and without the need for me to have a personal licence. The caveat is that the host licence holder and DPS remain accountable for anything that goes wrong. A much better outcome than I thought, at least for me.

 

[WaveJumper]

Good news great result