A NEW Spanish restaurant is set to open in Kendal after South Lakeland District Council's licensing sub-committee approved an application from the owners to serve food and drink.

Comida, which will be at numbers 90 - 92 on Highgate, asked for permission to sell wine and beer with food.

Simon Perkin, who will run Comida with his wife Sarah, has experience managing cafes for the Lakeland Arts Trust, including the one at Kendal's Abbott Hall.

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Addressing a meeting of SLDC's licensing sub-committee, he said: "The cafe will have a relaxing environment. It will mainly serve breakfast and lunch, and will serve dinner occasionally.

"We want to give people the choice to have either a soft drink or an alcoholic drink with their food, as some Spanish dishes go very well with a glass of wine.

"The Spanish culture is not about over drinking. We will encourage smaller measures and high quality.

"We have spoken to our neighbours about the planning for the extraction."

Objections against the application were submitted by two people, who expressed concern over potential noise and disturbance.

Chairing the committee, Cllr John Holmes pointed out that there had been a cafe on the premises for a long time, as well as seating outside the building.

He said: "We have accepted the application. We have given full consideration to the written objections relating to the possible effect of customers causing noise and disturbance.

"There have been no objections from any relevant authority and we do not think that the evidence in the objections proves that there would be any problems.

"We are satisfied that the issue of any public nuisance is being taken seriously and safeguards are in place against it."

The opening hours for the new eatery will be 8am until 6pm Sunday to Wednesday, closing at 10.30pm Thursday to Saturday.