I have just read that the Hungry Horse chain has had its application turned down for its new restaurant in Cowley.

I have read the reasons for this and I am puzzled so perhaps someone could illuminate me.

As I understand it, this large empty unit is earmarked for a restaurant of some sort.

As a caterer I can tell you that stock deliveries for a large business come in big lorries, they come often and have to have a delivery point.

To say that there would be considerable increase in vehicular movements is rather stating the obvious. You also have many more people called customers who would make more noise and you would probably need an alcohol licence as that’s what happens in restaurants, unless it is a big fast food restaurant, in which case you will get litter.

In an area such as this you will need a family-friendly eatery which offers good value for money as it otherwise simply will not be sustainable. The Hungry Horse chain would also have offered much-needed jobs in the area.

I feel sorry for the landlords who will never let this unit as it stands. I feel sorry for the local residents who will not get that asset to the area, but I really feel sorry for the Hungry Horse chain, which has apparently jumped through many hoops but was never going to win the battle.

The moral is do not build a unit for a restaurant where the council is never going to let you open one.

SUSAN GONZALEZ
Outram Road
Florence Park, Oxford