A NORTH Finchley bar which opened less than a year ago has been stripped of its licence after the owners repeatedly failed to heed warnings to cut out noise.
New owners took over the venue, formerly known as the Embassy Lounge, last year with promises to transform the previously troubled venue.
However, a licensing hearing at Hendon Town Hall yesterday heard how within months they had built an unauthorised Shisha terrace on the roof of the High Road bar, where they served alcohol and played loud music.
Trading standards officers from Barnet Council asked for a review open and serving booze nearly two hours after it was meant to have shut to the public in December.
Residents living up to 100m away had also complained to the council of the loud music emanating from late-night events, despite the owners only being allowed to play background music.
A report from environment officers working for the council said they had recorded loud music as late as March, despite meetings asking the owners to stop the nuisance.
Before the hearing the owners, through their agent Anthony O’Connell, said they were willing to turn the venue into just a restaurant with a raft of strict conditions.
But Sergeant Mark Altman, licensing officer for Barnet Police, told the hearing: “Police have lost all faith with the owners and the management, and we feel anything less than a revocation will take us back to the problems we have now.”
Chris Buczkowski, who has lived in the 100 Kingsway towerblock overlooking the bar for the last six years, said the problems were creating a “nuisance”.
He added: “The Fudu Lounge appear to have little regard for the laws and conditions applying to them.
“As a restaurant they would still be allowed to hold temporary event notices. They have been clever in a way as they have used these notices in the past and they would use them at every opportunity they can.”
In mitigation Mr O’Connell said the blame lay with one of the two business partners who owned the premises, saying he had made some “naive” decisions, without the other’s knowledge.
He said if they were allowed to convert the business to a restaurant there would be no continuation of the noise problems and the Shisha lounge would be shut immediately despite a retrospective planning application being in the pipeline.
He added: “Mr Ali respectfully asks the community to allow him to prove he will bring a different culture. He wants to work with the local community to put a stop to the bad history these premises have had.”
Giving the judgement Councillor Andreas Tambourides, chairing the committee, said they had taken into account the proble s caused to neighbours as far away as Nether Street.
He added: : “We feel it would not be adequate to simply impose further conditions on the licence as a remedy when the owners have failed completely to comply with the conditions already in force.
“There have been warning but it’s clear no notice has been taken of them.”
Afterwards Mr O’Connell said it was “highly likely” the owners would appeal the decision, meaning the bar could stay open as it is until after a potentially lengthy court battle.
Mr Buczkowski said he was “happy” with the decision which would stop the noise, but added “nobody wants to see somebody lose their business, but it was in their own hands”.
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