Sunderland's Italian Kitchen in Southwick plans new 'hot food servery' to help at busy times

Plans for a Sunderland bar and restaurant to introduce a ‘hot food servery’ have been submitted to city development chiefs.

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

This includes an application to change the use of a store room to a hot food servery, as well as installing two external windows to facilitate this.

The application from J T Taverns has been submitted with a range of supporting documents, including a design and access statement.

Those behind the scheme state 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 also noted that the development would “operate as a serving point to customers who visit the premises on foot and by car”.

The design and access statement adds: “Access to the premises by car is from Carley Hill Road to the north eastern corner of the site.

“The servery will have a window/hatch with a canopy above plus a second window for deliveries by suppliers.”

No opening hours are specified in the planning application for the proposed hot food servery.

The planning application also notes that the level of employees at Italian Kitchen will remain the same.

According to The Italian Kitchen’s website, the business has been in operation for more than a decade.

Its website adds it “celebrates casual Italian dining and drinking, paying homage to neighbourhood restaurants of Italy”.

A decision on the hot food servery will be made once a period of council consultation has concluded.

Sunderland City Council’s planning portal website lists a decision deadline of April 18, 2024.

For more information on the plan or to track its progress, visit the council’s planning portal website and search reference: 24/00306/FUL