Twist & Shout owner Jason Perrino would really like to stop turning away business.
He says thanks to Twist's Class A Liquor licence, he regularly turns parents, and their strollers, away from his restaurant.
SA国际影视传媒淚t happens a lot,SA国际影视传媒� he said. SA国际影视传媒淲e can't allow minors in here.SA国际影视传媒�
He wants to see changes to how Yellowknife establishments are licensed.
According to the NWT Liquor Act, venues have a choice between a Class A license, where a business generates revenue primarily from the sale and service of liquor and minors are verboten, or a Class B License, where minors are allowed but food must be served alongside drinks.
SA国际影视传媒淭he problem is that I'm licensed just like Harley's (Hard Rock Saloon). Class A, a bar, a drinking place,SA国际影视传媒� he said.
Perrino is proposing Class A establishments like Twist, with a commercial kitchen and a full menu, allow minors to eat with a parent until around 8 or 9 p.m.
He took his proposal to the municipal services committee on Monday but there weren't enough councillors on hand to make quorum.
But he's scaling the wrong tree: Ngan Trinh, senior communications officer with the Department of Finance, which is in charge of the NWT Liquor Act, stated to Yellowknifer in an e-mail this change wouldn't be within the city's jurisdiction.
The NWT Liquor Act does allow communities to manage some aspects of liquor control. In 2015, Yellowknife city council voted to allow bars to open on Sundays, after Perrino successfully lobbied the idea.
Fletcher Stevens, owner of The Woodyard Brewhouse & Eatery, started a petition to allow children into his establishment around Christmastime. He estimates it currently has more than 300 signatures.
SA国际影视传媒淚t's like this town isn't very accommodating to families,SA国际影视传媒� he said. SA国际影视传媒淭he main demographic of Yellowknife is between 30 and 40 years of age, and that is the prime age that people are having young families. So why would we segregate the majority of the population in the town?SA国际影视传媒�
It's an issue that hits close to home for Stevens, whose infant son isn't allowed in the restaurant portion of the business but can hang out among the beer vats in the brewery side under current legislation.
SA国际影视传媒淚t's quite frustrating,SA国际影视传媒� he said.
Terry Hartwright, general manager of the Black Knight Pub, agrees.
SA国际影视传媒淚'm a perfect example of someone who (arrived in Yellowknife) when they were 22 and is now 38 and I have a small child myself,SA国际影视传媒� he said. SA国际影视传媒淥ur chances for going out together aren't very good because there's only two maybe three places where we can go to eat as a family.SA国际影视传媒�
The Black Knight has brought the issue up with the NWT Liquor Licensing Board before, but were denied when they tried to get a special license to allow children at Saturday brunch, says Hartwright.
They're hoping Perrino will have better luck with the city.
City administrator Sheila Bassi-Kellett told Yellowknifer she was unable to comment until council heard Perrino's proposal directly.
SA国际影视传媒淥nce we hear about what his proposal is, then absolutely we'd look into the feasibility, what's entailed, who has the jurisdiction, what would be involved in that, pros and cons,SA国际影视传媒� she said.
