A new Syracuse restaurant received a positive recommendation for a riverfront district alcohol license from the Kosciusko County Alcohol Tobacco Commission Thursday.
T & C Restaurants LLC, doing business as Lakeside Restaurant, 110 E. Main St., Syracuse, sought a new beer, wine and liquor riverfront permit.
Casandra Griffin, part owner, and Delilah Bruce, representing the other owner, Tad Gongwer, said the principal nature of the business is a restaurant.
Excise Officer April Tackett said the notice posting was checked, the affidavit was submitted and the distance between a church and the business was checked and cleared.
Bruce said the business is currently Kelly Jae’s Lakeside Restaurant. Griffin said they bought and took over the business, which will just be known as Lakeside Restaurant.
Commission President Elim Smith asked what their hours are. Griffin said they are open Wednesdays through Saturdays, 5 to 9 p.m. Asked about lunch, she said in the summer - from June to the end of August - they do one day of lunch.
Tackett said that address has had a license there before, but because the riverfront permits can’t be transferred, they had to apply for a new license for that location.
Commission member Alan Alderfer asked Griffin if she’s been in the restaurant/bar business before. She replied she previously worked for Kelly Jae as well as another restaurant. She told him she understood bartending, staffing and checking for identification.
Tackett asked when they were ready for a final inspection. Bruce said anytime as they’re not under construction and there were no changes from Kelly Jae’s.
Dan Woods, commission member, made a motion to approve the application for a new license, Alderfer seconded it and the motion passed 4-0.
Bruce asked, with the commission’s approval of the license, if Griffin just had to wait until the license itself arrives and then she posts that.
“You don’t have to wait until the license comes, but when it does come, then, yes, you will have to post it,” Tackett explained. “This is a recommendation to the (state) commission to approve the license. They still have to make the final approval.”
The state commission meets the first and third Tuesday of each month, so they won’t hear Lakeside’s permit until Oct. 17.
“Usually, the day after that is when you’re marked active instead of pending. And then, once you’re marked active, you can start doing whatever you need, whether it be ordering from the wholesaler. They’re going to want your new permit number because it’s not going to be the same as the old one,” she stated.
As long as they’re marked “active,” Tackett said they don’t have to wait for the physical permit to arrive in the mail.
A new beer and wine dealer grocery store license application for Dolgencorp LLC, doing business as Dollar General Store #24108, 106 W. Dixie Drive, Silver Lake, was tabled to the Nov. 2 meeting as no one representing the business was present Thursday.
Two requests for license renewals were tabled to the Nov. 2 meeting due to violations.
The first violation was for Mac’s Convenience Stores LLC, doing business as Circle K #4702372, 606 N. Main St., North Webster. Their renewal was for a beer and wine dealer grocery store license.
Tackett said she checked to see if they had a violation, but forgot to check if the violation was for alcohol or tobacco. She said she would like to make a motion that if it was a tobacco violation, that the renewal be approved by the board; if it was an alcohol violation, that the board continue it until the November meeting so a representative of the business can be present.
The board didn’t have a problem with Tackett’s suggestion so they approved such a motion.
The second violation occurred in April 2023 and was for Warsaw Wings LLC, doing business as Buffalo Wild Wings, 376 Enterprise Drive, Warsaw. Their license is a beer, wine and liquor restaurant permit.
No one from Buffalo Wild Wings was present so they will have to appear at the Nov. 2 commission meeting for their violation.
Renewals without violations approved by the board included:
• Charcroff Investments LLC, doing business as Wings Etc. Warsaw, 3416 Lake City Hwy., Warsaw, beer, wine and liquor restaurant license.
• Night Shift of North Webster Inc., doing business as Stimmelators Gentlemen’s Club, 114 E. Washington St., North Webster, beer, wine and liquor restaurant license.
• Saint Regis Club LLC, 114 S. Buffalo St., Warsaw, beer, wine and liquor restaurant license.
• Stichter Adventures LLC, doing business as The Bowling Alley, 1535 N. Detroit St., Warsaw, beer, wine and liquor restaurant license.