Pretzel plan unravels

A NEWCASTLE restaurant’s recipe to stay open late and keep serving drinks has unravelled after licensing police found just one item on the menu after 9pm – pretzels.

Licensee of 5 Sawyers eatery Benjamin Dewson has been ordered to pay almost $5000 in fines and legal costs after being found guilty of running the venue as a bar.

Liquor and Gaming inspectors visited 5 Sawyers last September and were told the full food menu stopped at 9pm.

After 9pm, it offered only a “German-style pretzel with a cheese dipping sauce and cracked pepper”.

Under liquor licensing laws, it is illegal for a restaurant’s primary purpose to be the sale of alcohol. On the night they visited, the inspectors found there was no table service and patrons were buying drinks directly from the bar.