An Exmoor oyster business can now serve alcohol to its customers after a new licence was granted by district councillors.

George Pendarves runs Porlock Bay Oysters, based at The Oyster Shed in Porlock Weir within the Exmoor National Park.

Mr Pendarves applied for a licence to sell alcohol to his customers between Easter and the autumn, as well as special events held around Christmas time.

Somerset West and Taunton Council has now approved this licence, despite a strong objection from a neighbouring hotelier.

The company’s present base comprises a converted stable block near the Ship Inn, consisting of a kitchen area, a purification area for the oysters, several packaging or storage areas, a garage which has been converted for retail use, and a courtyard with several picnic tables.

Mr Pendarves currently sells oysters and gift boxes from this location and operates a mobile oyster bar which can be hired out for functions.

Under the new licence, Porlock Bay Oysters would be able to sell alcohol for consumption on and off the premises between 11am and 11pm daily between Easter and the autumn, as well as over Christmas on an ad hoc basis.

Outside of these times, the physical outlet will be closed, but wholesale and off-site deliveries will continue, with customers placing orders online.

Cindy Siu, who runs the neighbouring Locanda on the Weir hotel, laid out her objections at a virtual meeting of the council’s licensing sub-committee on Wednesday morning (August 17).

She said: "The outside seating area in the courtyard is directly adjacent to my property, my business and my domestic dwelling. Only a few metres separate the two.

"Potentially you could have up to 24 people out there, possibly in one party, doing their oyster tasting and drinking, and it will definitely cause noise pollution.

"Because Exmoor is a dark sky reserve, it’s very dark in Porlock Weir – so for them to have people drinking and eating outside, they would have to light the courtyard, which would impact three of my guest bedrooms and where my family lives.

"My guests come for the peace and quiet of the national park. This will cause a terrible nuisance."

In the run-up to the hearing, Ms Siu lobbied for a cut-off point of 6pm for the sale of alcohol, while Mr Pendarves offered a compromise of 9.30pm.

Mr Pendarves said: "We have invested considerable sums to try and make this a viable business, having bought it out of administration in 2019.

"We really feel that the ability to focus on higher margin retail customers is the best way of making this a viable business over the long term.

"We have no intention of being open until 11pm every night – we just wanted to give ourselves the maximum amount of flexibility to run the business as we see fit.

"We have had a lot of interest from friends and customers in our oyster tasting events, where we will serve oysters paired with different dressings along with different wines and champagnes.

"We are not aiming to be a drinking establishment, where people get drunk and spill out into the street."