New snack bar for Petersfield

 The College Club expected to appear on the new menu

Plans for a new food outlet in College Street have prompted fears among other insecure establishments that this might bring unwelcome competition.
 

The grade II listed building at 4 College Street is to be converted to a take-away shop offering sandwiches, rolls, cakes, pastries, muffins, baguettes, wraps, salads, baps, crisps, nuts, yoghurts, fruit salads, shakes, smoothies, milk, coffees, teas, chocolates, still water, sparkling water, flavoured water, juices, fizzy drinks and assorted nibbles.

If the proposed new development receives permission to go ahead this would hopefully see the sympathetic transformation of the dilapidated building opposite the Red Lion, currently something of an eyesore.

Luke Warmcoffy, proprietor of Malicious Gossip sandwich bar, said: "I say let it rot. This is wholly unfair; these people are likely to come in offering a high standard of inspirational new food, at annoyingly competitive prices, at a time when we really want to be increasing the cost of roast partridge and brandy-soaked truffle club sandwiches and the like.

"This needs to be reported to the Monopolies Commission or the European Court of Human Rights or whoever deals with this sort of thing."

A change of application for the protected building is currently in process and the owners of alternative food outlets are adamant that the use should not change from being an estate agent.

Mike Rowave, owner of Mixxo, said: "We have reached saturation point, Petersfield had already passed its natural limit for food outlets before we set up Mixxo, but I wasn't going to say that back then was I?"

If it isn’t a market day, and you are desperate for a takeaway snack in Petersfield you are currently restricted to Tesco, Waitrose, M&S, Tesco Express, Caffe Nero, Costa Coffee, Boots, Chinwags, Mezzo, Eden, The Red Lion, The Drum, The Good Intent, The George, The Square Brewery, The Royal Oak, British Rail Cafe, Greggs, Poppins, One Tree Bookshop, Fez, Cloisters, Folly Tree Tea Rooms, Folly Wine & Alehouse, Heidi's, Monoloco, Papa John’s, Pizza Express, Petersfield Kebab House, Rowans Deli, Tai Tong, and the Seafare and Nicky's Fish and Chip shops. This is to say nothing of the proper restaurants that would probably knock you up a snack.

Rowave added: "Whilst we have enough food outlets, there is always room for another Estate Agency. We only have Haart, Jacobs & Hunt, Cubitt & West, Gascoigne Pees and Henry Adams and we all know how buoyant the housing market is at the moment.”

What's all shish then

I went to the dentist. He said: “Say Aaah.”

I said: “Why?” He said: “My dog's died.”

A kebeb van owner has failed in his attempt to obtain a license to sell food in Petersfield’s town square from midnight until 1am on Saturdays and Sundays.

The application made by Whezma Spanyul, owner of the Just Like That kebab van, was made on the basis that it is everybody’s basic human right to have food. He argued: “As young people leave the town’s pubs after a night’s drinking they should have the opportunity to buy wholesome food, init peeps.”

Kebab van fare is already available from an incumbent van which parks in the square and is licensed to trade until midnight on Friday and Saturday nights.

The existing kebab van has however been caught flouting the law and trading beyond midnight. The owner is now being watched very closely to ensure he keeps to the strict 12 o’clock deadline.

Spanyul believes he has a chance of ousting the existing van and had hoped to steal a march on his competitor by getting a license for an extra hour.

Petersfield Town Council released a statement saying: “The request from Mr Spanyul has been turned down. Whilst it could be argued that there is a requirement for wholesome and nutritional food, this van can hardly be described as offering any on its menu.”