It looks like Bardo won’t open its location in Navy Yard any time soon after all.
D.C.’s alcohol regulators have denied the beer garden’s application for a liquor license, as first reported by local blog Barred in DC.
Last fall, Bardo owner Bill Stewart applied for a liquor license for a scaled-down version of the “BeerDisneyLand” he intends to create for Bardo Riverfront.
Stewart originally submitted an application to the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration in March 2015 for a beer garden that would hold a maximum of 2,000 people. However, that application was rescinded due to concerns about unruly crowds, noise levels and security concerns.
He since has said he will cap the maximum total occupancy for the beer garden at 750 people and has made other changes to address concerns from community leaders and police. But it appears as though that was not enough for the Alcoholic Beverage Control board.
In its decision, the board said:
While Bardo has presented a modified Application, the Board is not convinced that this new business plan alleviates the problems previously identified at this site. Specifically, the Board is still not convinced that an open air tavern has the capability to prevent unreasonable noise disturbances; that the neighborhood has a sufficient amount of parking; that Bardo can coexist or be included in the neighborhood’s official traffic plan; that encouraging stadium attendees to cross Potomac Avenue, S.E., is safe; and that Bardo can exist without delaying or interfering with people and vehicles attempting to the leave Nationals Park after games or other events. Consequently, Board finds itself compelled to once again deny an application at this location.
Bardo responded to the news in a tweet earlier today.
news– ABRA board rejected the Riverfront license application. So we have to modify and reapply. So that means- no river party this summer
— Bardo Brewpub (@bardobeer) March 17, 2016
Bardo Trinidad will continue as usual!! woo hoo.
— Bardo Brewpub (@bardobeer) March 17, 2016
Photo via Twitter/Bardo Brewpub
Despite objections by some neighbors, ANC 6B endorsed the effort by Bullfrog Bagels to secure a liquor license for its planned Eastern Market location, Capitol Hill Corner reported.
Neighbors of the proposed eatery complained that early morning deliveries in the back alley of the location at 317 7th St. SE would be disruptive and worried about trash management.
Jeremiah Cohen, the owner of Bullfrog Bagels, agreed to try to limit the disruptions caused by deliveries, but did not agree to receive deliveries through the building’s front door as some neighbors had requested.
The ANC’s approval also hinged on reducing the hours that alcohol will be served at the eatery by 30 minutes per day.
Cohen plans to serve brunch and dinner with alcoholic beverages at the new location.
A lawyer representing the neighbors who objected to the liquor license endorsement told Capitol Hill Corner that residents were disappointed with the ANC’s decision to approve the license.
The issue will now go before the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration on Dec. 14.
Photo via Facebook/Bullfrog Bagels
H Street NE restaurant Sally’s Middle Name has applied to expand into the second floor of its building at 1320 H Street NE, adding 60 seats to the restaurant.
The application was submitted to the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration during its meeting on Wednesday. Residents will have a chance to protest the expansion at a hearing that has not yet been scheduled.
Also on Wednesday, ABRA approved a settlement between Advisory Neighborhood Commission 6C and Sugar Factory, a new candy store and bar in Union Station. According to the terms of the agreement, alcoholic drinks larger than 32 oz. can only be served to groups of two or more. Sugar Factory’s menu includes several cocktails served in 60-ounce goblets.
The agreement also allows Sugar Factory to stay open until midnight Thursday through Saturday and until 10 p.m. during the week. It also bars the sale of alcoholic beverages to-go.
ABRA also approved a settlement between ANC 6B and the 7th and L Street Market at 700 L St. SE. The agreement prevents the corner store from selling individual alcohol containers, including beer or malt liquor in single containers less than 70 ounces and spirits in half-pint or smaller containers.
The ANC also called on the market to be more proactive about discouraging the consumption of alcohol around the store by not providing cups, posting no loitering signs and selling the alcohol in clear plastic bags.
The Alcoholic Beverage Control Board fined a lounge on the H Street corridor $5,000 for several rule violations.
Da Luft at 1242 H St. NE, which had its license suspended for several days after a fight in April, was fined for violating three Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration rules. The bar and lounge did not have an ABC Board approved manager present while alcoholic beverages were being sold, failed to show and ABRA investigator their business records and licenses and failed to keep a record of times when police were called to the bar, according to the order released today by the ABC Board.
The majority of the fine was related to the failure to show an ABRA investigator their license. An ABRA investigator visited the bar on March 19 and talked to an employee who claimed to be an ABRA licensed manager but didn’t provide his license, which all managers are required to keep with them.
Several days later, the employee, Ijiti Ajiboye Laosebikan, sent a picture of his license to the investigator, according to the Alcohol Control Board order. However, the investigator discovered that the license number was assigned to a different employee and that the license had been altered in the picture sent to investigators.
The order added an additional $500 fine because Laosebikan was the only manager present at the time of the March inspection, meaning there was not a licensed manager present while alcohol was being served.
Another $500 fine was levied because the bar and lounge refused to provide written records of every time the police had been called to the bar. In April, the bar was closed for four days after a bystander was injured and a police officer was assaulted when a brawl inside the bar spilled out onto the sidewalk.
The Board’s order also noted that the bar was accused of selling alcohol between 3 and 8 a.m. on a Saturday, a violation of D.C. law. However, that charge was dropped because a key witness was unavailable.
The bar has 30 days to pay the fine or its liquor license will be suspended. Also, if the bar violates the rules any time in the next year, they will automatically have their license suspended for two days.
Representatives from Da Luft could not be reached immediately to comment on the fine.
A Peruvian eatery on the H Street corridor is looking to offer some Latin dancing with its cebiche and pisco sours.
Ocopa at 1324 H St. NE submitted an application to the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration this week to host live entertainment. The entertainment will include Latin dancing and “occasional live music,” according to the application.
A representative of the restaurant could not be reached immediately for comment.
If approved, the application would allow them to host live entertainment every day of the week between 6 p.m. and 2 a.m.
Photo via Facebook/Ocopa Restaurant
A lager or Merlot soon might be as common as a latte or smoothie at a Starbucks two blocks from the U.S. Capitol.
The Starbucks at 237 Pennsylvania Ave. SE has applied for a liquor license to serve beer and wine, according to paperwork filed with the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration this week.
The filing came after Starbucks submitted liquor license applications for locations in Dupont Circle, Georgetown, Chevy Chase, Arlington and Reston last week.
A Starbucks representative told Hill Now’s sibling publication, Borderstan, then that the push for alcoholic drinks is part of the company’s new “Starbucks Evenings” service, which also includes a small plate menu. The coffee chain may serve “craft beer,” along with red, white and sparkling wines by the bottle and glass, according to a sample menu.
But food and drinks vary by region, meaning it’s possible the stores could serve local beer and wine. Small plate possibilities include truffle mac and cheese, bacon-wrapped dates, chicken skewers and truffle popcorn.
Photo via Flickr/Charles Williams
A yacht club along the Southwest waterfront has received permission to periodically fire a cannon after agreeing to a plan intended to address locals’ concerns about noise.
Capital Yacht Club at 660 Water St. SW can shoot its “saluting cannon” every Friday at sunset through Nov. 30 and midday on national holidays, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board ruled this week. The cannon, which will be pointed toward the 14th Street Bridge, also will go off for special functions and events, a club spokeswoman said.
After the club moved to its current location from 1000 Water St. SW last year, locals who live aboard boats in the area complained about noise from the cannon, which the organization has fired regularly since 1957.
The residents and the club in June reached an agreement to allow the cannon firing to resume, pending the approval of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board. The club, which holds a liquor license, needed the support of the board to use its cannon again.
Under the board’s order, the club must “alert nearby persons in advance of the cannon firing either by the rapid ringing of a bell for a ten second duration from the CYC clubhouse, a horn or whistle blast, or by oral notification” five minutes before it uses the cannon.
Founded in 1892, the club has about 200 members.
Photo via Facebook/Capital Yacht Club
Da Luft Restaurant & Lounge on the H Street corridor has had its liquor license suspended after police say a bystander was injured and a police officer was assaulted in a fight that spilled out of the bar.
The D.C. Alcoholic Beverage Control Board ruled today that Da Luft can’t serve alcohol due to an “imminent danger” the panel said the bar poses to the public’s health and safety. Da Luft has three days to request a hearing on the board’s decision.
D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier closed Da Luft for four days and requested an immediate revocation of the bar’s license after officers saw a brawl outside the 1242 H Street NE bar early Saturday morning.
A bystander was cut in the leg during the melee, and a police officer had a hand put to his throat while trying to stop the fight.
A Da Luft representative didn’t immediately respond to inquiries.
The brawl started in Da Luft after 12 a.m. Saturday when customers and employees argued over whether the bar’s rooftop could be used for a birthday party, according to a letter from the ABC panel to owner Josephine Ijiti. About 30 people were celebrating on the bar’s second floor.
A female bystander was knocked to the floor, cut in the leg with an “unknown blade-like object” and then robbed, the board said. The fight then spilled onto the sidewalk, where it was spotted by police.
Da Luft tweeted this week, in response to the group H Street Great Street, that the woman received “a laceration on her leg bumping into a chair, no crime existed.” After the woman was injured, Da Luft security employees moved customers outside, according to the ABC panel.
It took about 20 police officers about 20 minutes to break up the fight, according to the panel. About 40 Da Luft customers apparently were involved in the brawl.
Police said they did not receive a call from Da Luft’s security employees, whom police said were sent home before authorities could interview them. The scene was cleaned by the bar’s staff before police could examine it.
Police said they couldn’t immediately access the surveillance system Saturday morning, either.
“The Metropolitan Police Department is very concerned about the safety and welfare of the citizens living in and visiting this city,” Lanier wrote in a letter to Ijiti on Saturday. “I would be remiss in my duties if I did not address the concerns and the safety of the citizens of the District of Columbia following this altercation which initiated inside of your club and ultimately resulted in one of your club’s patrons sustaining lacerations.”
Da Luft Restaurant & Lounge on the H Street corridor won’t open until at least Wednesday after a fight broke out there over the weekend, injuring a bystander and an officer, according to police.
DC Police Chief Cathy Lanier closed Da Luft for four days and requested an immediate revocation of the bar’s license after officers saw a brawl outside the 1242 H Street NE bar early Saturday morning. A bystander was cut in the leg during the melee, and a police officer was assaulted while trying to stop the fight.
Da Luft posed an “imminent danger to the health and safety of the public,” Lanier wrote in a letter to Da Luft’s owners, Josephine and Temitope Ijiti.
“The Metropolitan Police Department is very concerned about the safety and welfare of the citizens living in and visiting this city,” Lanier wrote. “I would be remiss in my duties if I did not address the concerns and the safety of the citizens of the District of Columbia following this altercation which initiated inside of your club and ultimately resulted in one of your club’s patrons sustaining lacerations.”
A Da Luft representative didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
The brawl broke out inside the bar before 1 a.m. Saturday. A female bystander was knocked to the floor, cut in the leg with an “unknown blade-like object” and then robbed, police said. The fight then spilled onto the sidewalk, where it was spotted by police.
Da Luft tweeted last night, in response to the group H Street Great Street, that the woman received “a laceration on her leg bumping into a chair, no crime existed.”
After the woman was injured, Da Luft security employees moved customers outside, police said.
Police said they did not receive a call from Da Luft’s security employees, whom police said were sent home before authorities could interview them. The scene was cleaned by the bar’s staff before police could examine it, according to the letter by Lanier.
Police said they couldn’t access the surveillance system Saturday morning, either. A manager said co-owner Temitope Ijiti, who had left for the night, was the only person who could get the surveillance video.
A detective called Ijiti, but the person who picked up the phone would not acknowledge the officer.
The Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration continues to investigate the fight and may take further action against Da Luft, a spokeswoman said.
Photo via Facebook/Da Luft Lounge
(Updated at 8:15 p.m.) The H Street NE sports bar shut down by Police Chief Cathy Lanier will reopen tomorrow.
Halftime Sports Bar announced on Twitter this afternoon that they would be open Thursday, “just in time for March Madness.” The 1427 H St. NE bar was closed for 96 hours by Lanier on Jan. 31, after a crime was reported there the previous night.
WE'RE BACK!! @HalftimeonHSt will be reopening tomorrow Thursday, March 12th!… just in time for March Madness! #hstdc
— Halftime Sports Bar (@HalftimeonHSt) March 11, 2015
Police responded about 11:20 p.m. Jan. 30 to a report of property destruction at the bar, according to a letter from Lanier published by Frozen Tropics. Officers saw broken glasses and knocked-over items, and found a semi-automatic pistol in owner Karl Graham’s possession, the letter says.
The Alcoholic Beverage Control Board lifted the suspension of Halftime’s license today, a spokeswoman for the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration said in an update. Halftime will appear before the board at a hearing scheduled for April 29. Bar management could be formally charged by the Office of the Attorney General, fined or have their license revoked or suspended again.
Bar management did not immediately respond to an inquiry.
Photo via Halftime Sports Bar
The H Street NE sports bar closed by Police Chief Cathy Lanier is still fighting to get its liquor license back.
After a reported assault at the bar by an employee, Halftime Sports Bar will be evaluated by the D.C. Office of the Attorney General, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board determined at a hearing yesterday.
On Jan. 31, Lanier ordered the 1427 H St. NE bar closed for 96 hours after a crime was reported there the previous night. Police responded about 11:20 p.m. to a report of property destruction at the bar, according to a letter from Lanier published by Frozen Tropics. Officers saw broken glasses and knocked-over items, and found a semi-automatic pistol in owner Karl Graham’s possession, the letter says.
“I find that continued operation of this establishment presents an imminent danger to the health and safety of the public,” Lanier wrote.
No lawyer for Graham appears in online court records, and calls to the bar and to Graham’s other bar, The Elroy, were not returned.
The hearing before the office of D.C.’s first elected attorney general, Karl Racine, has not been scheduled yet, according to Bill Hager, a spokesman for the D.C. Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration.
Photo via Halftime Sports Bar
(Updated at 3:55 p.m.) Local bakeries that serve alcohol-infused cupcakes may soon need to follow new D.C. laws.
Amendments to D.C. Code that Mayor Muriel Bowser signed yesterday would require businesses that sell booze-infused baked goods to get a $1,000 liquor license and sell the sweets in sealed containers.
The Omnibus Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Amendment Act of 2014 would apply to all “confectionary food products” that contain between 0.5 and 5 percent alcohol per volume. The sealed products would need to be labeled with the brand of alcohol used, and could be sold only to customers age 21 and up, the legislation says.
No current district regulations address alcohol in baked goods, the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration confirmed.
The push for the bill began when the booze-infused cupcake company Crunkcakes asked ABRA what permits they would need. Faith Alice Sleeper was informed there was no D.C. precedent for alcohol-infused foods like hers, which “aim to give you cavities and liver damage at the same time.”
“I was told initially that I would need the same type of license as D.C. Brau,” she said, noting she was told that required a $6,000 a year fee. “I was a small business and couldn’t afford that.”
Sleeper worked with the office of Tommy Wells, then-councilman for Ward 6, to draft the amendment. She testified before D.C. Council in October and said she was pleased to hear the bill got Bowser’s stamp of approval this week.
“I’m happy to start my process to become fully legal,” she said.
Sam Whitfield, co-owner of Curbside Cupcakes (257 15th St. SE), said his business would reconsider selling alcohol-infused treats if the law goes into effect.
“We would have to reassess whether it’s worth it for us,” he said about the shop’s eggnog, Bailey’s Irish Cream and tequila sunrise cupcakes.
The act would also create a festival license for art and sporting events that last 5 to 15 days. One license type would allow the sale and serving of beer and wine, for $1,000. A second class of license would allow liquor sales as well, for $2,000.
Additionally, the new law will allow District distilleries to sell cocktails containing their products, similar to how breweries are allowed to sell pints.
The act will be under review by Congress for the next 30 days.
Photo via Flickr/tarale
