A BAR owner has defended two drinks promotions which have been labelled ‘irresponsible’ by some other landlords.
The 00 Bar in the Victorian Arcade has introduced ‘all inclusive Sundays’ during which revellers pay a set price in order to chose from a range of drinks.
The gold package is £35 and offers the full range of choice from the bar including all draught, spirits and bottles. The silver package is £25 and offers a selection of beers, lagers, spirits and mixers. Both cover three-hour periods.
A second promotion offers unlimited prosecco on Thursdays.
Owner Dan Sharp said they were not ‘all you can drink’ promotions, but instead offered people chance to enjoy a range of drinks over a three-hour period.
“It is an all inclusive offer. It’s just a three hour window where you can sit back and relax and not have to worry about getting your wallet out every two minutes.
“We do 16 different craft lagers and 60-plus gins and a lot of our clients come in for these reasons - because we offer something different to the rest of the town centre.
“Other bar owners are unhappy because eight years ago, they got told not to do it.
“We don’t believe we are doing irresponsible promotions of drinks, we are offering a range of drinks that can be enjoyed in a slightly different manner to normal.
“If someone had had too much to drink, we would refuse to serve them.”
Dan said he believed similar offers were available in other town centre bars. He is due to meet with the council and licensing officers over the next few days.
Some landlords in the town centre have expressed concern.
Dave Clayton, who owns the Londoner, said: “We have just got the top end of town right, it’s becoming a place to be with nice restaurants and this could cause problems.”
Paul McNicholas, who runs Annie Murray’s, said he wanted a good relationship with neighbouring 00 Bar, but said: “One thing I would be concerned about is people turning out after the promotion. We as a neighbouring pub would have to deal with that.”
Coun Charlie Wraith, chairman of the licensing board, said he was surprised at the promotions, as he believed there was an unwritten rule that publicans didn’t run cheap drinks offers because of previous problems in the town centre.
Council boss Matt Gladstone said: “Although this isn’t a legal licensing issue, we’re keen to promote sensible drinking and to keep our town centre safe. We’re working with 00 Bar and other town centre venues through our Best Bar None scheme, which promotes the responsible management and operation of alcohol licensed premises.
“We’ve spoken to 00 Bar to make sure they have control measures in place and we’ll be monitoring their promotion. If there are any problems we will take action.”
