Under the current Statutory Instrument (SI) No. 136 o...fectious Disease) (COVID-19) Regulations, only establishments that serve food can be open, and alcohol consumption is only allowed if customers are having a meal. On the island, many restaurants and bars have operated under one Publican’s Special license. It now seems that this liquor license only applies to bars, which are not allowed to open under the current SI. For businesses that operate both as a bar and restaurant but are now limited to function solely as a restaurant, the San Pedro Town Council now requires them to obtain a Restaurant liquor license. Many on the island have recently received the necessary license and are conducting business like a restaurant that only serves alcohol with a meal.

Following a meeting on Tuesday, October 27th between members of the San Pedro Town Council (SPTC) and representatives of the local health authority, licensing board, and police department, it was agreed that establishments who recently obtained a Restaurant license, but were not inspected by the required health and safety officials, should be closed until Monday, November 2, 2020. According to the Mayor, once they are approved, they can reopen. The inspection will focus on ensuring that applicants have the adequate facilities required for a full-service kitchen. In an interview with Mayor Daniel Guerrero, he weighed in on reports that businesses in the past had operated as restaurants and bars under one Publican’s Special License. He said that was wrong, as each license is different from the other. He explained that Publican’s Special licenses are only for bars and that if an establishment wants to operate as a restaurant, a Restaurant License is needed.

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The Issuing of Restaurant Licenses in San Pedro

There are reports that restaurant licenses are being issued left, right and centre on the island of Ambergris Caye. Several businesses, particularly bar owners are applying for these licenses to beat the current state of emergency regulations that prohibit bars from operating at this time. These businesses have publican licenses to sell liquor so the restaurant licenses allow them to sell food, liquor and operate during the pandemic with seating now expanded beyond ten persons depending of space to allow for social distancing between tables. Attorney General Michael Peyrefitte broke down the situation, while ComPol Chester Williams says that a number of those establishments are not in compliance with the requirements.

Michael Peyrefitte, Attorney General

“The publican license allows an establishment to sell food and liquor, but if you want to go there just to consume liquor, you can do that as well. That’s the publican special license. When you have a restaurant license, you are allowed to consume liquor, but with the food, so the restaurant license dah a little bit a liquor with yo food. Publican license is liquor and food or just liquor if yo want. An establishment that has a restaurant license alone cannot have people just go there and drink like a bar.  Under the quarantine act, signed by the Minister of Health, the only places that are allowed to open are restaurants – places with restaurant licenses. Now some people could get creative; if all I have is a publican license, what I can then do is apply to my local government to say I have a publican license, but I want to open as a restaurant and so I hereby apply for a restaurant license and under that restaurant license you are allowed to open under the SI.”

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police

“Whenever an establishment applies for certain category of license, there is the inspection that is normally done by the liquor licensing board, the police, the health and the fire to ensure that the legal requirements in order ofr them to be given that license. And in these cases from San Pedro, I am told that some of the requirements are not being complied with. And may I say that restaurant license is one of the few licenses for which the Liquor Licensing Act clearly stipulates what the criteria must be to get a restaurant license. And so I am hoping that these establishments that are given restaurant license that they meet the legal requirements as stipulated in the intoxicating liquor licensing act. Because if it is that they don’t meet the legal requirements, whether or not they have a license, we are going to close them down.”

Channel 5