The owner of an Italian cafe and shop in Cambridge hopes being able to sell alcohol will help support his business.
Haci Kul asked Cambridge City Council for permission to sell alcohol at the Gusto Cafe and Organic Food in East Road, between 9am and 11pm.
Gusto Cafe and Organic Food. Picture: Hannah Brown, LDR
He told councillors at a hearing on 16 February that he also runs two other cafes.
Mr Kul said: “The reason I applied for the licence is we do not make enough business in that area. I have been doing business for over 30 years in Cambridge and I have two businesses already in the city centre, so I am well established.
“I want to be able to serve customers Italian beer and wines. The business is not perfect at the moment after Christmas.”
He wants to open the cafe in the evenings to offer people meals and set out ambitions for more ‘Gusto’ branches in the city.
He plans security staff on the doors during the evening.
A member of the public arguing that allowing the cafe and shop to sell alcohol between 9am and 11pm, seven days a week, would be “excessive”.
Gusto Café and Organic Food
The resident said: “East Road has for many years needed to tackle serious problems with public drunkenness and associated anti-social behaviour, and has been in a cumulative impact zone.
“The current level of public drunkenness, as well as both drug and alcohol abuse is an ongoing serious problem that must not be exacerbated by the approval of this very extensive on and off site licence at Gustos on East Road.”
Police and environmental health officers did not object.
At the hearing Mr Kul agreed to reduce the times he applied to sell alcohol to between 10.30am and 10.30pm from Mondays to Saturdays, and between 10.30am and 9.30pm on Sundays.
Licence conditions means alcohol will only be sold at the cafe to people buying food and served to them at a table.
In the shop, alcohol sales will be limited to people also buying other grocery items.
Councillors granted the licence.
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Dining and Cooking