Sunderland restaurant Italian Kitchen wins planning permission for new ‘hot food servery

Plans for a Sunderland bar and restaurant to introduce a ‘hot food servery’ have been given the green light by city development chiefs.

Sunderland City Council’s planning department has approved an application for The Italian Kitchen off Thompson Road in the city’s Southwick ward.

This includes changing the use of a store room at the site to a hot food servery where customers can collect takeaway orders, and installing external windows to facilitate the use.

The application from J T Taverns was submitted earlier this year with supporting documents, including a design and access statement.

Those behind the scheme said the servery would “allow customers to pay for and collect hot and cold food rather than queue inside the premises which sometimes affects customers within the restaurant at busy times”.

It was noted that the development would “operate as a serving point to customers who visit the premises on foot and by car”, as well as offering a window for deliveries by suppliers.

During a council consultation exercise on the plans, no letters of representation were submitted.

After considering the planning application and assessing it against planning policies, Sunderland City Council’s planning department approved it on March 28, 2024.

Council planning officers, in a decision report, said the proposal was “incidental and ancillary to the operation of the existing, operational restaurant”.

It was recommended that a condition should be added to any planning permission to “control the floor area of the proposed food servery, to ensure that it remains ancillary to the primary use”.

The council decision report adds: “The council’s local highway authority has raised no objections to the proposed development.

“It is considered that the proposed development would be in a sustainable location in that it benefits from good public transport links.

“The highway officer has also considered there to be a sufficient level of on-site parking provision to serve the existing restaurant, public house and proposed takeaway collection element.

“In these terms, it is considered that the proposed development would have no unacceptable impacts on the highway network in terms of capacity or safety”.

According to The Italian Kitchen’s website, the business has been operating for more than a decade and “celebrates casual Italian dining and drinking, paying homage to neighbourhood restaurants of Italy”.

Approved operating hours for the new hot food servery are 12noon to 8.30pm, Monday to Saturday, and 12noon to 5pm on Sundays.

A council report stated these operating hours aim to “ensure a satisfactory form of development in the interests of residential amenity”.

For more information on the plan and council decision, visit Sunderland City Council’s planning portal website and search reference: 24/00306/FUL