Late night kebabs could soon be available from hockey club car park in Leamington

Warwick District Council’s licensing panel this week [Thursday] agreed to extend the hours for Ravinder Hayer who has been trading from outside Khalsa Leamington Hockey Club, in Wise Street, for the past six months.

During that time, Mr Hayer’s hours for the Kebab Shack were restricted from 5pm to 9pm each day and at this week’s hearing he urged the three councillors making up the panel to extend those hours to allow him to trade either in the mornings or evenings.

He said: “I want to extend my hours to see what works for me. I am quite a new business and not sure what hours will be best to make a good profit for myself.

“If I can get the evenings working properly then I won’t be doing the mornings, I can’t do 24 hours a day. I want to give this five or six months to see if it works and if not then swap to the mornings and stop the evenings.”

The catering trailer is located at the rear of the hockey club’s car park and out of view from those walking along Wise Street.

Cllr George Illingworth (Con, Kenilworth Abbey and Arden) said: “It seems to be in an odd place - you expect street traders to be in a place where people pass by.”

Mr Hayer explained that he had been given a good deal by the hockey club because he played for them and that passing trade accounted for less than half of his orders.

He explained: “I have tried to build Uber Eats up so it will be mainly deliveries that are app-based. My customers tend to order at eight o’clock or nearer to nine o’clock just when I’m closing. That’s why I am asking for the extra hours."

“The club closes at 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays so I’m hoping to pick up a few customers from there as well. I have been going in at 8.30 and asking if anyone wants any food. I will now be doing that at 10.30.”

Mr Hayer said he had built the catering trailer himself from scratch and started trading in April but only on Fridays and Saturdays because he had another job.