In a bid to increase his restaurant and event business, Harvard General Store owner Scott Hayward hopes to add a dinner menu to his offerings, set up outside dining in summer months, and serve beer or wine with any meal.
Hayward unveiled his plans Tuesday night at a public hearing before the selectmen to review two liquor license applications awaiting their approval.
The first, a restaurant pouring license, would allow the store to offer beer and wine on its menu and serve it to first-floor café customers and second-floor event attendees. The second application proposes to reduce the area of the package store to the left of the checkout counter and cordon it off, opening more space for café tables. State liquor laws require package stores and restaurant areas to be separated and managed by separate business entities, hence the need for a cordoned-off package store.
The selectmen approved both applications Tuesday night by unanimous vote and have sent them to the state’s Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission for review. Once the commission approves them—which can take a week to three months—Executive Assistant Julie Doucet can issue the licenses and Hayward can implement his plan.
In a narrative he provided the selectmen, Hayward wrote that for the store to be sustainable over the coming years, “it needs to utilize its spaces to their fullest potential.” He told the selectmen he wants to serve meals and drinks in the first-floor café area from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. with the ability to extend the store’s hours to midnight for special events. Hayward plans to promote his second-floor event business for public and private parties of 49 persons or fewer, he said, but the space could also be used for overflow dining on event-free nights. Wine and beer would be available to consume with any meal.
“Any kind of restaurant in the center of town, I’ll take it,” said Selectwoman Alice von Loesecke while voting to approve the licenses.
The selectmen, however, were unable to approve a third element of Hayward’s plan, a request to allow dining and drinks in a defined area outside the store. Harvard’s bylaws allow indoor dining in the business district of which the General Store is a part, but they make no mention of outdoor dining. Moreover, the land outside the store belongs to the town and is managed by the Parks and Recreation Commission. To serve food and drink there, land must be leased to the store. The selectmen have asked Town Administrator Tim Bragan to work with Hayward and Town Counsel Mark Lanza to find a way to permit outdoor dining. Once they do, Hayward will have to apply for a restaurant pouring license for that area.
Hayward told the Press that once he receives his licenses, he’s ready to reconfigure the first floor and begin dinner service. He said he would likely begin by offering dinner two to three nights a week and, if successful, expand to seven nights a week. But he said serving food and drink outside during the summer months would make the biggest difference to the store’s fortunes. “It’s a huge opportunity for us,” he said.
