The Ocala City Council has given its blessing to expanding a permit allowing a downtown restaurant to serve beer, wine and liquor for on-site consumption.
Councilmembers unanimously agreed Tuesday night to allow The Courtyard on Broadway, located at 120 SW Broadway St., to sell the alcoholic beverages in an additional 1,000 square feet of indoor space, bringing the total area for the unique restaurant and bar known for its video and board game offerings to 3,600 square feet. The hours for the eatery will be Wednesday and Thursday 5 p.m. to midnight and Friday and Saturday from 5 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. The facility will host private events on Sundays.
There are 22 other establishments within a 500-feet radius of The Courtyard on Broadway that sell alcoholic beverages. Those include Sushi Bistro, Ivy on the Square, Downtown Billiards, Brick City Southern Kitchen, O’Malley’s Alley, Mark’s Prime Steakhouse, Molly Maguires, Stella’s Modern Kitchen, Agapanthus, Corkscrew Winery, The Tipsy Skipper, Irie Eats, Marion Theater, Pi on Broadway, The Keep, La Cuisine, Black Sheep on Broadway, RaceTrac, Broadway Café, Feta, Brick City Lodge and Marion Cultural Alliance.
As with all alcoholic beverage permits issued by the city, The Courtyard on Broadway’s new permit will be provisional for three months, upon which time the applicants can request they be extended an additional three months. During the provisional period, the restaurant must provide to the city’s building department copies of the vendor’s state-issued alcoholic beverage license. If that doesn’t happen, or if the name on the state-issued license isn’t the same as the name of the permit holder, the permit will be voided. Otherwise, it will become fully issued.