Decision Maker:

Outcome: Recommendations Approved

Is Key Decision?: No

Is Callable In?: No

Date of Decision: November 25, 2025

Purpose:

Content: The unanimous decision of the Committee is to grant the application. This is subject to an amended schedule of conditions (attached to this decision notice) which was also agreed unanimously, save for condition 1 which was agreed by a majority.   The Committee in reaching its decision has taken into account:   ·  The evidence before it both written and oral   ·  The relevant parts of the Council’s Statement of Licensing Policy especially paragraphs 4.7, 5.1, 6.1, 6.2, 7.3, 7.4.3, 7.12 and 7.14.   ·  The relevant parts of the Guidance issued by the Secretary of State in particular paragraphs 1.16, 1.17, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.8, 2.9, 2.20, 2.21, 2.22, 2.23, 2.24, 2.25, 2.26, 2.27, 2.28, 2.31, 2.32 and 9.12.   Committee’s reasoning and findings are:   Committee considered the application as presented by the Applicant company. The company director, Mr Thanh Hoa Nguyen, attended the hearing and was supported by Ms Lana Nguyen, who spoke on behalf of the Applicant.   At the outset, Ms Nguyen clarified that the Applicant had initially misunderstood the hours sought for licensable activities. This matter was resolved following discussions with Northumbria Police, and the application was amended accordingly, as detailed in Appendix 2. The Applicant also agreed a schedule of licence conditions with both the Police and, subsequently, the Licensing Authority, which added further conditions to those originally agreed. These conditions are set out in the Licensing Authority’s written representation and included within the agenda report.   Ms Nguyen further advised that the Applicant wished to amend the application by removing Late Night Refreshment and off-sales of alcohol, confirming that the premises would no longer provide takeaway services, delivery, or click-and-collect. The application now sought authorisation solely for on-sales of alcohol between 10:00 and 23:00 hours. The premises would operate as a restaurant serving mainly cold food, such as sushi and salads, with any hot food being pre-prepared off-site and purchased from wholesale suppliers (e.g., Costco). Food service would cease at 21:00 hours. Alcohol sales would be restricted to customers ordering food, in accordance with a condition agreed with the Police and Licensing Authority. This was clarified with the Applicant, who confirmed he understood the requirements of this condition i.e. that if a customer came into the premises after 21:00 hours and could not order food, they could therefore not just order alcohol.   In response to questions, Ms Nguyen confirmed that the premises had no gas supply, and any heating or cooking would be limited to an air fryer, microwave, or small salamander oven. The kitchen was described as small and comparable to a domestic kitchen, which had led to a reduced menu. Ms Nguyen acknowledged concerns raised by Environmental Health regarding potential odour nuisance and explained that the menu was designed to minimise such risk, given the existing extraction system (two filters and recirculation). Ms Alison Hunter, on behalf of Environmental Health, confirmed that the substantial changes to the application addressed most concerns raised in the earlier written representation. Reduced operating hours alleviated noise concerns, and the removal of takeaway and delivery services mitigated risks of on-street nuisance and public safety issues. The risk of odour nuisance was considered minimal due to the limited menu and domestic-style kitchen appliances. Ms Hunter withdrew the earlier representation but proposed a revised condition restricting the menu and kitchen use to that described by the Applicant.   Committee also noted and had regard to the written representation submitted by Mr Fox, a local resident.   Decision   Committee carefully considered all written and oral submissions presented in relation to the application. It noted the significant amendments made to the application since its original submission, as detailed in the agenda papers. These amendments substantially reduced the scope of the licensable activities originally sought. Further reductions were made following the agreement of conditions with the Police and the Licensing Authority, who subsequently withdrew their earlier representations.   The application before Committee was therefore limited to permitting the sale of alcohol for consumption on the premises between 10:00 and 23:00 hours daily.   Committee was mindful that the Police and Licensing Authority had withdrawn their representations on the basis of an agreed schedule of conditions designed to promote the licensing objectives in the context of the original application (subject to reduced hours for alcohol sales). However, as the amended application no longer included late-night refreshment, off-sales of alcohol, or takeaway/delivery facilities, Committee reviewed the previously agreed conditions and determined that several were no longer appropriate, proportionate, or justifiable. In accordance with statutory guidance on this topic, Committee resolved to remove conditions relating to late-night refreshment, off-sales, and takeaway/delivery services.   Committee also determined that certain conditions should be amended to better reflect the intended operation of the premises as a restaurant, with alcohol sales ancillary to food service. It noted the position of Environmental Health and was satisfied that the amended application would promote the licensing objectives, particularly in respect of public nuisance and public safety.   Committee considered the outstanding representation from a local resident, Mr Fox, which raised concerns about the proposed hours of licensable activity, particularly in relation to early morning or midnight closing. Given that the application had been amended to a terminal hour of 23:00 daily, Committee gave appropriate weight to this representation in that context.   In reaching its decision, Committee had regard to paragraph 9.12 of the statutory guidance issued under section 182 of the Licensing Act 2003, which recognises each Responsible Authority as an expert in its respective field.   Having considered all the evidence and given appropriate weight to the representations and submissions, Committee unanimously resolved to grant the application as amended, namely:   To permit the sale of alcohol for consumption on the premises between 10:00 and 23:00 hours daily.   In relation to the operating schedule and conditions, Committee unanimously agreed to remove all conditions relating to off-sales of alcohol, late-night refreshment, and takeaway/delivery services. By a majority decision (Councillor Higgins dissenting), the Committee also resolved to amend Condition 1 to restrict the restaurant to mainly cold food and to permit only domestic kitchen appliances for the preparation or heating of food. Committee, by majority, resolved to do so as under the earlier conditions agreed with the Police and Licensing Authority, the sale of alcohol was intrinsically linked to the sale and therefore preparation of food. Having regard to the submissions made by Environmental Health, Committee (by majority) concluded that an amendment to condition 1 was therefore also required to ensure the promotion of the licensing objective of prevention of public nuisance.   Conditions   As per the operating schedule attached to this notice. This schedule includes the conditions agreed with Northumbria Police and the Licensing Authority but removes all conditions which related to off-sales, late-night refreshment and takeaway / deliveries, as these were no longer relevant to the application and licensable activity granted.   Right of Appeal   There is a right of appeal against this decision to Newcastle Magistrates Court.  An appeal must be commenced within 21 days beginning with the day on which you receive written notification of the decision.   Conditions   1.  The premises shall trade as a restaurant which mainly serves cold food and only uses domestic kitchen appliances to prepare and heat food.   2.  There will be no change to the brand or operating style of the premises without prior written notice to the Licensing Authority, which shall include details of the brand or operating style of the premises. The Licensing Authority shall advise within 21 days whether a formal application for variation or a new application is required and the licence holder shall comply with that direction.   3.  Alcohol shall only be sold to and consumed by patrons seated at a table as ancillary to a table meal.   4.  Waiter/waitress service shall be available at all times the premises are open for licensable activities.   5.  The maximum numbers of persons (including staff) allowed on the premises shall not exceed 40 persons.   6.  The operator shall ensure that at all times when the premises are open for any licensable activity there are sufficient, competent staff on duty at the premises for the purpose of fulfilling the terms and conditions of the licence and for preventing crime and disorder.   7.  The operator and designated premises supervisor shall conduct a risk assessment for the general operation of the premises and in the case of individual bespoke events.   8.  The premises licence holder shall ensure that all relevant members of staff receive training in their responsibilities under the Licensing Act 2003.Staff training to include the risk of proxy sales. Such training shall be documented and records made available upon request from the police or an authorised officer of the Licensing Authority. This will include refresher training which shall be conducted at regular intervals not exceeding 12 months and will be retained for 12 months.   9.  A CCTV system shall be designed, installed and maintained in proper working order, to the satisfaction of Northumbria Police. Such a system shall: -   a.  be operated by properly trained staff b.  be in operation at all times that the premise are being used for a licensable activity. c.  ensure coverage of all entrances and exits to the licensed premises internally and externally. d.  ensure coverage of such other areas as may be required by the Licensing Authority and Northumbria Police. e.  During the times licensable activities are provided, a member of management or staff will be contactable and trained in the retrieval of CCTV footage, with the ability to download the relevant footage onto a disc/memory stick within a reasonable time of any request from Northumbria Police to do so. f.  provide continuous recording facilities for each camera to a good standard of clarity. Such recordings shall be retained on the hard drive for a period of 31 days and shall be supplied to the Licensing Authority or Police Officer on request.   10.An incident and refusals log shall be maintained on the premises (in writing or digitally) to record incidents and refusals and shall be made available to officers of the licensing authority or Northumbria Police upon request. Details of the following will be recorded:   a.  Drugs or other illegal items recovered b.  All crimes reported to the premises or by the premises to the police c.  All ejection of customer d.  Any incidents of disorder e.  Any faults in the CCTV system f.  Any visits made by a responsible authority. g.  All logs will be retained for 12 months.   11.An alcohol sales refusal register will be kept at the premises and be maintained to include details of all alcohol sales refused. The register will include the following: a.  The date and time of the refusal b.  The reason for the refusal. c.  Details of the person refusing the sale d.  Description of the customer e.  Any other observations.   12.The refusals register will be made available for inspection and copying on request of an authorised officer or responsible authority. All entries must be made within 24 hours of the refusal.   13.There shall be displayed suitable signage of sufficient size and clarity at the point of entry to the premises and in suitable location at any points of display and sale advertising customers that underage sales of alcohol are illegal and they may be asked to produce evidence of age.   14.The premises shall display prominent signage indicating the Challenge 25 scheme is in operation.   15.A Challenge 25 policy shall be adopted ensuring that all members of staff at the premises shall refuse to sell alcohol to anyone who appears to be under the age of 25 and who is seeking to purchase alcohol unless that person provides credible photographic proof of age evidence. Such credible evidence, which shall include a photograph of the customer, will either be a passport, photographic driving licence, military ID or Proof of Age card carrying a “PASS” logo.   16.A written record must be available for inspection upon request by any responsible authority, detailing the names of those members of staff who are authorised by the Designated Premises supervisor to sell alcohol.   17.Prominent, clear and legible notices will be displayed at the exists of the premises reminding our customers to respect the needs of local residents and to leave the premises quietly.