CAFE owners believe Orange will benefit from having smaller licensed premises where people can enjoy a drink.
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DNA Coffee and the Hardback Cafe have recently been granted on-premises liquor licences by the NSW Government Licensing Service.
The licence allows alcohol sales in conjunction with the provision of food.
Hardback Cafe owner Ash Brown said he believed there was a demand for alcohol sales outside of pubs.
“It’s not the boisterous drinking scene. I don’t think it’s competing with the pubs. It’s a totally different thing,” he said.
DNA Coffee owner Ann O’Neill said she was inspired by the cafe scene in Melbourne.
“I’ve spent some time down in Melbourne and I’ve seen what has been achieved. It’s nice to be able to go to a venue that is not a pub or club and have a glass of wine. From what I’ve heard customers saying it seems like nine out of 10 people aren’t interested in going to a pub environment, but they do want to sit and have a quiet drink,” she said.
DNA started selling wine, imported beer and cocktails yesterday, while the Hardback Cafe has been operating under its licence since mid-November.
Both venues have a strong focus on local wines.
Mr Brown said he was encouraged by the licensing authority to apply.
“They said that the more dispersed that they can get people in town as far as licences go, when it comes to packing up time they don’t have them all coming out of one pub and causing problems,” he said.
Ms O’Neill said she planned to open until 10pm or 11pm on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, while the Hardback Cafe opens until 7pm on Thursday and Friday nights.
An event to celebrate the new era at DNA will be held tomorrow evening.
Mr Brown said the initial response had been strong at the Hardback Cafe.
“The licence side is something we want to expand on. We feel there’s a market there that we can compete in,” he said.
ellen.jones@ruralpress.com
