A SEAFRONT café in St Aubin is seeking to obtain an alcohol licence so customers can enjoy a beer or glass of wine with their meals.
The forthcoming meeting of the Licensing Assembly will consider an application on behalf of Little Gem, which reopened for its second season earlier this month.
Formerly trading as Fort View café, the business tucked behind St Brelade Parish Hall was acquired just over a year ago by former midwife Clare Carney and rebranded as Little Gem.
During the recent winter closure, work took place to extend the indoor capacity and make the venue more adaptable to the vagaries of the weather.
Having formerly had just a handful of indoor tables, the extended café boasts a significantly increased capacity, and has canvas “windows” which can be rolled up to enhance the sunshine and sea breeze when weather conditions allow.
Mrs Carney also hopes to gain a licence so that diners can buy a locally-brewed beer or glass of wine – her application was approved at a recent parish assembly and will be considered by the Licensing Assembly on 21 March.
Little Gem is a genuine family affair, with Mrs Carney calling on the services of her three teenagers – twins George and Edward, plus daughter Mimi – and her parents, Lorraine and Mick Hall, as well as her husband, Paul, during time off from his day-job.
Mrs Carney, who had no experience in hospitality before leaving her job as a midwife in the maternity unit at the General Hospital, said there’d been a very positive reaction since the venue reopened at the start of March.
“We felt a bit of pressure during February when people kept walking past and asking us when we’d be open,” she said.
“People in the village have been really supportive and we’ve got lots of regular customers, plus quite a few tourists already, so it’s been quite a promising start to the season.”
Although the prime focus is on day-time trade, the venue may open for occasional weekend evenings, including fish-and-chips on Fridays, once warmer summer weather arrives.
