By Kim Siebert MacPhail
Back-to-back public hearings were held at the Selectmen’s meeting on September 4th to determine whether the beer and wine licenses currently held by Firebox BBQ and Ginger Japanese Restaurant would be upgraded to full liquor licenses. The applications from both restaurants were ultimately accepted, but it should be noted that with these approvals, Bedford has reached its limit of14 full licenses, a limit determined by the state, based on the population of the town. However the five beer and wine licenses that the two restaurants are relinquishing in favor of the upgrades will become available to the town to issue to future applicants.
Firebox
Speaking for Firebox BBQ, which is located at 347 The Great Road, proprietors David Goldstone, Bryan McConnaughey and attorney Pam Brown said that the restaurant opened during an extremely difficult economic time. They added that the location presented additional challenges due to its distance from the street and the visual confusion along that stretch of The Great Road.
The proprietors reported that a full liquor service is something Firebox customers have asked for. They added that since Margarita’s and Waxy O’Connor’s have opened, their business has suffered a steep decline, to the point that they now close as early as eight o’clock on many nights. “We need the additional revenue to remain viable. We need a reason for people to come in and stay a little bit longer,” said Goldstone. In addition, a broader selection of beverages, they say, will better complement the new menu they will unveil after renovating to a bistro-style, farm-to-table concept.
Attorney Brown spoke of the proprietor’s desire to move the restaurant away from feeling like a fast-food place. The renovations, she said, will not only include the installation of a bar with a dozen seats. “They’ll actually switch over to waiter service. You can still order take out at the window but otherwise it would be sit-down service. They’re going to add some things to the menu to try to keep it vibrant and be a place that Bedfordites want to go.”
Even with the addition of the 12 bar seats, the seating capacity at Firebox will remain at 44, since the outdoor tables that occupied the front of the building during the summer months have now been removed due to Code Enforcement’s determination that patrons using them were unprotected from vehicles in the parking lot.
Before the Selectmen voted on Firebox’s request for the liquor license upgrade, Selectman Mark Siegenthaler closely questioned Goldstone and McConnaughey about the outdoor seating code violations and about a surfboard that acted, he said, as an unofficial, unauthorized sign.
“I understand some of your frustrations [with the outdoor seating and sign limitations] but you chose the building that you’re in, and it’s a difficult place…. Part of this, though, is going to this whole question of whether we grant you an alcohol license. To me, some of the reasons that we would or wouldn’t, would be whether or not you show that you in fact follow the rules. There are a lot of rules around having a full alcohol license.”
“It wasn’t meant maliciously,” said Goldstone. “The whole seating capacity is based on [the availability of] parking, and we removed the seats from inside to put them outside. We honored [the seating capacity of 44]. I didn’t think we were being underhanded or trying to circumvent the law.”
“When we took over the property, we understood that the zoning was for 44 seats,” added McConnaughey. “We thought we were in code and we never heard anything otherwise, so that was our thinking: that everything was on the straight [and narrow].”
“About the surfboard,” continued Brown. “The only way that becomes a sign, under our sign bylaw, is if there’s an element of it that is intended to call attention to it. It has no wording on it, it’s just a surfboard. A decoration on the wall.”
“We took it very seriously, though,” said McConnaughey. “When this [issue] arose from Chris [Laskey], immediately we went out and took it down. There wasn’t even a debate.”
Once the Selectmen ascertained that Goldstone and McConnaughey were conversant with the rules associated with a full liquor license, they unanimously approved Firebox’s application. Funding for the renovations has been secured and the work is expected to commence soon.
Ginger Japanese Cuisine
Mei-Ling Khoo, manager of Ginger Japanese Cuisine, and attorney Pam Brown spoke at the public hearing in support of that restaurant’s application for a full liquor license. Ginger will be returning to the Blake Block as a first-floor tenant, but instead of a mid-block location, it will occupy 88 The Great Road, the 2,435 sq. ft. space at the easternmost end of the building. The location is more than triple the size of their former site and allows for increased seating of up to 82 patrons.
The restaurant will include a sushi bar with six seats at the back of the dining room, directly across from the main entrance, where patrons can watch their food being prepared.
Along with the full liquor license approval, the Selectmen also approved seasonal outdoor seating for up to ten people, so long as the seating area is clearly and physically delineated from the sidewalk.
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