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Reckless Restaurant Delivery Guys Cost UES Eatery A Liquor License
By
John Del Signore
Published May 14, 2012
Modified May 14, 2012
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By
John Del Signore
Published May 14, 2012
Modified May 14, 2012
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The State Liquor Authority has taken the rare step of denying a liquor license to a Chinese restaurant on Second Avenue near East 91st Street because of the reckless conduct of its delivery men. Vicky's Cottage wanted to add wine and beer to its menu, but after local residents complained to Community Board 8 about its employees roaring around on electric bikes and riding on the sidewalk, the CB voted not to recommend a liquor license, and the SLA brought the hammer down.
Owner Danny Dong actually changed his restaurant's name repeatedly (from Adam's Chinese Restaurant to Uptown Cottage to Vicky's Cottage) in an attempt to distance his restaurant from the complaints, but to no avail. An SLA spokesman tells us, "Our mission at the liquor authority is to protect public's health, safety and welfare. We also strongly take under consideration of the views of the community board. So at a recent meeting April 24th, the full SLA board voted to turn down the liquor license, taking in the totality of the information brought to our attention."
Dong tells the Post he fired two deliverymen after he caught them on motorbikes, which have scared the local residents. “They go by their own rules,” Dong said. “I’ll ask, ‘Do you have a regular bike?’ And they’ll say, ‘Yes,’ but they’ll also have a motorbike sitting around the corner. You never know." These electric bikes are as ubiquitous as they are illegal, and earlier this year Council Member Jessica Lappin, who represents the Upper East Side, announced a new bill to double the fines on drivers of electric bikes, from $500 to $1000. Her office has been deluged with complaints about "the scourge" of these souped up delivery bikes, which can hit speeds of 30 mph.
Community Board member David Rosenstein is working with police to create a record of what restaurants employee delivery men who get tickets for operating electric bikes. He says he was run over by a biking delivery man, and tells the Post, “They’re riding on the sidewalks. You can’t get out of the way. They’re a public danger." Rosenstein says he's seen delivery men for Vicky's Cottage riding on the sidewalk, and witnesses say they've seen motorized bikes chained up outside his restaurant on multiple occasions. (You can watch the video of the contentious hearing here; scroll down to #56.)
"The Liquor Authority is making the right decision here," says attorney Joseph Levey, who handles all liquor license matters for restaurant and bar law firm Helbraun Levey & O'Donoghue. "They have discretion when it comes to weighing the character and fitness of an applicant and an owner who admits that he can't control his staff, and has not been interested in cooperating with the community board is not exactly an ideal licensee for the Authority."
Tagged
cyclists
liquor license
sla
state liquor authority
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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