“Four years of hell”: Greenwich bar escapes closure calls

A bar and restaurant in Greenwich has been allowed to stay open after a number of complaints and calls from a local councillor to have its licence revoked.

Angle 90 on Trafalgar Road saw a number of residents complain at a licensing review meeting last week.

Various options were on the table with the venue now able to stay open despite some stating that they’ve previously breached conditions on a number of occasions even after a previous review and that “even if they introduce new licensing conditions (they’re) not in a position to enforce them”.

It was stated that four mediation meetings had achieved little.

Complaints centred around excessive noise including in a rear garden area, music audible long past official closing time, people entering in the early hours and poor parking outside the venue. It was noted there had been an increase in complaints since previous review of premises licence in 2022.

Charing the meeting Cllr Ann-Marie Cousins asked what reassurance for residents with new conditions.

Greenwich Officer Precious Evwrujae stated they were content for it to stay open if it goes back to a restaurant but at the Community Protection Team they had four requirements:

1. Installation of noise limiter
2. Reduction of hours
3. No readmittance after midnight
4. No garden use after 10pm

Winston Brown representing Angle 90 sought to know why complete revocation was only announced late in the day.

Greenwich’s legal representative that that while all options including revocation are open the late addition “isn’t ideal”.

The business stated they would agree to music limiter and limit number in garden to 10 people with staff monitoring plus no re-entry after 11:30pm Thursdays to Saturdays.

After the hearing the council’s Licensing Committee decided that the establishment should only operate as a restaurant with noise limiters installed, with the report stating:

“The sound-limiter shall be tamperproof, be installed, and maintained, with maximum sound levels to be agreed with the Royal Borough of Greenwich Pollution Team (Environmental Health) to ensure inaudibility in nearby noise-sensitive premises”.