BCP COUNCIL has announced from next year beachfront restaurants will be asked to commit for a five-year period to ‘improve the quality of operations.’
This summer, BCP had more beachfront venues than ever before but they came with some challenges.
We looked back at how the beach bars fared over the summer season and whether they will be returning next year.
Early in the summer the Beach Hut Bar and Grill in Westbourne closed after being open for a matter of weeks, with the owners claiming this was due to council rules and regulations.
These allegedly included: “No alcoholic drinks without food. Only two drinks per person.
“Food must be ordered first before drinks. Food must be ordered at the table.
“And no loud music or DJs.”
The bar says this resulted in them receiving “bad reviews, a high turnover of staff and overall massive loss.”
The pop up beach bar said it would not be making a return to Bournemouth’s beach front.
READ MORE: Bournemouth beach bar closes weeks after opening
Following the closure many residents questioned why some of the beach bars had different rules.
The council said the six pop-ups attached to established restaurants on the beach front such as: West Beach, The Prom Diner, Sobo Beach, Sunset Beach and El Murrino have premises licences that are considered on an individual basis.
However, pop ups which have licences issued by BCP Council such as the Beach Hut Bar and Grill, did have the same conditions, which is that alcohol cannot be served without food, due to concerns raised by Dorset Police.
READ MORE: 'We're not the obstacle': Council issues statement over licensing for beach pop-ups
Sobo Beach opened in July in place of the demolished Bistro on the Beach in Southbourne.
However, operations manager Rich Slater announced they would be unable to serve alcohol until two weeks after they had opened, as the council hadn't given them a licence in time for opening.
Just weeks later, the beach bar was broken into and alcohol and cash was stolen from the site.
READ MORE: Sobo Beach restaurant broken into weeks after opening
In August a new beach pop up restaurant opened for one month at Toft Zig Zag.
The Bayside Restaurant was funded by the council and was open for one month only until August 30.
It was housed in a barn-style wooden-framed marquee, and promised to offer a “contemporary food menu” sourced locally under the direction of Bridport-born chef Gideon Hitchin.
However, residents who visited the restaurant say they were left disappointed.
The restaurant was slammed with negative reviews in their first week which led the team to change its menu and tweak their set-up.
READ MORE: Changes at Bayside Restaurant after opening week reviews
Speaking about the future of the beach-front businesses, a BCP Council spokesperson said: “Bayside Restaurant, Bar & Grill will finish trading on 29 August, with set up remaining in place to provide hospitality at next month’s Air Festival. It is due to be removed from 5 September.
“El Murrino Beachside Kitchen and Sunset Beach Club are contracted for operation until 2 October.
“We are intending to tender the beach restaurant opportunities for a 5 year period, commencing 2023, to encourage investment and improve the quality of operations”.
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