POLICE said a venue operator was “pushing at the limits” of the licence conditions governing the sale of alcohol at his premises.

And a community association representative said the so-called cafe had no kitchen and was “a pub by stealth”.

Their concerns came to light after Joshua Theed applied to extend the hours on the drinks licence for 2 Church Street, a cafe bar a few doors down from the William the Fourth pub in Brighton.

City council licensing officials joined Sussex Police and the North Laine Community Association in objecting to the licence application.

The Argus: Concerns have been raised about 2 Church StreetConcerns have been raised about 2 Church Street

The venue has had a licence to sell alcohol since 2017 when an Italian deli operated from the premises.

Its existing licence allows alcohol sales from 8am to 9pm from Monday to Thursday, 8am to 10pm on Friday and Saturday and 9am to 6pm on Sundays.

Mr Theed wants to extend the hours from 8am to 11pm every day even though this would breach the council’s licensing policy.

He also applied to be allowed to serve drinks past midnight on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve with a 1am cut-off.

His application had five letters of support from customers but objectors said that cafe licences would usually permit the sale of alcohol until 10pm.

Mr Theed’s premises are in the busy city centre where the council has tougher rules governing new and extended licences because of problems with drink-related crime and disorder.

The Argus: A meeting was told that there is no kitchen at 2 Church StreetA meeting was told that there is no kitchen at 2 Church Street

Sussex Police licensing officer Mark Thorogood shared his concerns at a council licensing.

He told the panel of councillors the venue only just complied with its cafe licence. This required substantial food to be available at all times.

It had been, he said, “pushing the limits” of what was substantial after the previous owner refitted the venue as a bar.

Mr Theed had since refitted the premises again and police were concerned it now appeared to be branded as a wine and cocktail bar.

Given its current cafe-style licence, alcohol should be secondary to providing food, he said. But the seven-page menu initially had five pages devoted to alcohol, with no hot drinks and just seven food items. Two of those were nuts and olives.

The food offering had since been expanded but, the panel heard, there was still no kitchen.

The panel decision should be made public this week.