Key Points
- Proposed Establishment: A new three-storey Italian restaurant and bar is proposed for 94 Bishop’s Bridge Road, Bayswater, Central London, by an applicant known as The Italian Lounge Ltd.
- Contested Hours: The applicant is applying for the grant of a licence to operate the premises and sell alcohol to the public until 2:00 AM every single day of the week.
- History of the Site: The site was previously used for an Italian restaurant called Mangia Tutto. The licence for Mangia Tutto was revoked by Westminster City Council in November 2025 due to gross breaches, including trading until 3:30 AM and being aggressive to the police and council officers.
- Police Opposition: The Metropolitan Police have also objected to this new application because of their apprehensions about crime, disorder, and the absence of any connection to the previous license holders. According to PC Steve Muldoon, the proposed conditions will not be adequate to deal with any potential public disorder.
- Community Opposition: The South East Bayswater Residents’ Association, the Bayswater Residents’ Association, and the Environmental Health department of Westminster all oppose the new application because of their concerns about noise, nuisance, and late-night disturbance.
- Mitigations Proposed by the Applicant: The applicant guarantees table service only, alcohol service only to seated customers, fully trained staff, and CCTV surveillance round the clock in the premises.
- Decision Expected: A final decision will soon be announced regarding the application for the license.
London (The Londoner News) September 1, 2026 — A controversial planning and licensing application for a sprawling three-floor Italian restaurant and lounge in Central London has triggered fierce opposition from local residents, environmental health teams, and the Metropolitan Police due to the venue’s proposed 2:00 AM daily closing time and its troubled historical legacy.
Why are local authorities and police concerned about the new restaurant application?
The site earmarked for the new enterprise sits at 94 Bishop’s Bridge Road in Bayswater—an address carrying substantial regulatory baggage. As reported by Katherine Gray of MyLondon, the location was previously home to a restaurant called Mangia Tutto, which suffered a dramatic license revocation in November 2025 following an extensive catalogue of compliance failures.
Detailing the history of the site, MyLondon journalist Katherine Gray noted that council inspectors visited the former establishment late at night on August 25 of the previous year, discovering customers actively eating and drinking outside the premises at 3:30 AM—three and a half hours past its legally permitted closing time. Furthermore, when enforcement officers entered to identify themselves, a male on-site reportedly became “hostile” and aggressively refused to disclose his details or produce the mandatory premises licence.
Building on these historical infractions, the Metropolitan Police have formally registered a written objection against the new venture submitted by applicant The Italian Lounge Ltd. As reported by Katherine Gray of MyLondon, PC Steve Muldoon expressed acute skepticism regarding the motives and structural readiness of the new applicant. PC Muldoon stated in his official objection that:
“This is an application for a venue that has recently been revoked due to persistent condition breaches and trading after the venue’s terminal hour.”
PC Muldoon further highlighted that the terminal hour previously permitted at the location was substantially earlier than the expansive 2:00 AM window currently requested. Highlighting the dangers of greenlighting such hours, PC Muldoon added:
“The conditions proposed are not strong enough to combat any potential crime and disorder that may occur as a result of the venue’s opening.”
In addition to these worries, police representatives stressed that authorities needed to thoroughly verify whether the newly formed entity, The Italian Lounge Ltd, maintains any hidden operational or personal links to the individuals whose licenses were stripped away late last year.
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What do community groups and residents say about the 2 AM opening hours?
The apprehension felt by law enforcement is mirrored by civic organizations representing local neighborhoods. Both the South East Bayswater Residents’ Association and the broader Bayswater Residents’ Association, alongside Westminster City Council’s Environmental Health department, have mobilized to block the approval of the extended operating hours.
Expressing profound dismay over the scale of the operation, a representative for the South East Bayswater Residents’ Association issued a definitive condemnation of the proposal. As documented by MyLondon journalist Katherine Gray, a spokesperson for the group stated:
“We most strongly object to this application, particularly the hours applied for Sale of Alcohol, Late Night Refreshment and the opening hours. The hours proposed are likely to impact on the licensing objectives due to noise and nuisance from late night activities.”
The community association emphasized that any trading hours granted at this contentious Bayswater corner should strictly adhere to Westminster City Council’s established ‘Core Hours’ policy, rather than stretching deep into the early morning across all seven days of the week. Residents argue that permitting a three-storey hospitality venue to serve alcohol until 2:00 AM would permanently shatter the peace of the residential vicinity, inviting recurring anti-social behavior, vehicular congestion, and street-level noise pollution.
How does the applicant plan to address public safety and disorder?
Faced with mounting pushback from municipal watchdogs, police officials, and local residents, the applicant has attempted to reassure licensing authorities by embedding several security and management stipulations into their operational blueprint.
According to documentation reviewed by MyLondon reporter Katherine Gray, The Italian Lounge Ltd has formally promised that the three-floor venue will operate on a strict table-service-only basis. Under these proposed self-imposed guidelines, alcohol would exclusively be served to customers who are seated, thereby eliminating vertical drinking dynamics that frequently exacerbate rowdy behavior in late-night hospitality venues.
Additionally, the applicant has committed to maintaining comprehensive, continuous CCTV coverage across the entire premises to monitor customer activity and ensure accountability. Management has also asserted that all staff members will undergo rigorous, fully comprehensive training tailored to responsible beverage service and conflict management. Despite these assurances, critics note that the applicant omitted further supporting documents from their primary submission package, leaving local regulators with sparse evidence to evaluate how effectively these safeguards will be implemented in practice.
What happens next in the Westminster licensing decision process?
The fate of the ambitious three-floor Italian lounge now rests squarely in the hands of local municipal governance. A definitive regulatory decision regarding whether to permit the venue’s expansive three-floor footprint and its daily 2:00 AM alcohol sales is scheduled to be determined by the Westminster City Council Licensing Sub-Committee.
Given the intensity of the opposition mounted by the Metropolitan Police, environmental health officers, and localized residents’ associations, legal analysts and community advocates anticipate a contentious administrative hearing. Whether the local council will prioritize commercial nightlife expansion in Central London or defer to public safety and neighborhood preservation concerns will be revealed following the committee’s review.
