The Licensing Sub-Committee granted a new premises licence for Café Zee, with restrictions on alcohol sales, and imposed several conditions to promote licensing objectives. The committee considered representations from an interested party regarding potential issues such as public nuisance, crime and disorder, and the protection of children.

Application for a New Premises Licence for Café Zee

The Licensing Sub-Committee granted a new premises licence for Café Zee, located at 5 New Broadway, Ealing, W5 5AW, with specific conditions and amended hours. The decision was made in the absence of the applicant, Atmosveer Ltd, and the objector, PSRG Lee Limited, who both failed to attend the hearing.

The licence was granted for on-sales of alcohol only, from 12:00 to 22:30, Monday to Sunday. Off-sales of alcohol were not permitted. This decision was made after careful consideration of the Licensing Act 2003, statutory guidance, the Council's Statement of Licensing Policy, the application, the operating schedule, and the representation received from the interested party.

Several conditions were imposed on the licence, including:

• Alcohol must be stored behind the counter or in the kitchen, away from customer access.
• The CCTV system must provide clear coverage of all customer seating areas, including internal rear seating and external areas, and be retained for at least 31 days.
• External seating areas must be checked hourly for empty glasses and bottles.
• The external seating area cannot be used by customers after 19:30 hours.
• No beer, lager, or cider with an Alcohol By Volume (ABV) of 6.5% or above can be sold, except for agreed premium or craft products.

The Sub-Committee noted that the premises is situated within a Special Policy Area, which aims to prevent the proliferation of licensed premises contributing to crime and disorder. The objector, PSRG Lee Limited, represented by Hoi Sin Ng, Director, raised concerns about alcohol-related nuisance, loitering, staff and customer safety, the impact on children and families, and the risk of off-sales contributing to street drinking. The Sub-Committee acknowledged these concerns and felt that the imposed conditions, along with the operating schedule's measures such as Challenge 25 and staff training, were appropriate and proportionate to promote the licensing objectives.

The decision to exclude off-sales was made due to the applicant's absence, which prevented the committee from clarifying the proposed business model for off-sales and the safeguards in place. The Sub-Committee was not satisfied that off-sales would promote the licensing objectives, particularly the prevention of crime and disorder and public nuisance.

The Sub-Committee comprised Councillor Rima Baaklini, Councillor Shaira Karimi, and Councillor Valery Ryan. Hatoon Zeb acted as the Legal Adviser, and Cornelia Harding was the Committee Clerk. Sean O'Brien, Robert Dear, Anjali Garcha, and Merkesha Grant were also in attendance.