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Record of Proceedings

Howard County Alcoholic Beverage Hearing Board Meeting – May 12, 2026

County Council & Boards — Tuesday, May 12, 2026
BodyHoward County, Maryland
SessionCounty Council & Boards
DateTuesday, May 12, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Is being recorded and summarized.

0:06

Mr.

0:06

Chen, we're we're recording and we can start the meeting now.

0:10

Sure.

0:11

Thank you.

0:12

Welcome to the May 12th Howard County Alcoholic Beverage Hearing Board Hearing.

0:20

There will be four cases in front of us before we discuss the cases.

0:35

Uh meeting minutes.

0:38

If there are any changes or uh disagreement, please let me know now.

0:45

If not, um I I'd like to have uh uh proposal.

0:56

I propose that we accept the minutes of the March 24th meeting.

1:04

Chair Chen.

1:07

Yes, Mr.

1:08

Coleman.

1:08

Yes, Miss Johnson?

1:10

Yes, Miss Kim.

1:12

Yes.

1:15

Great, thank you.

1:17

So the first matter in front of us is the change of uh resident agent uh for a club beer wine and a liquor license uh from Nottingham L L C L L C treating as the Nottingham's uh in the name of uh Brian Penny uh to the individual named Robert Dirac for this uh 7,826 square feet of tarman with uh 1600 square feet patio located at uh 8850 Stanford Boulevard Columbia, Maryland.

1:58

Uh and this is I believe it's a pro se and Mr.

2:02

Chair, before we proceed um all of the documents on fire incorporated by reference here thank you, Jr.

2:15

Durek is here.

2:16

Yes, he is in the room.

2:20

Okay, uh Mr.

2:22

Direct, please raise your right hand.

2:27

Do you promise that the testimony that you are going to give today will be the truth votes, nothing but the truth?

2:33

I do.

2:35

Okay.

2:36

Please state your name and address for the record.

2:39

Uh my name is Robert Gyrak.

2:41

My resident address is 996 Wamper Lane, Westminster, Maryland, 21158.

2:49

Okay, thank you.

2:50

Now you can proceed.

2:56

Do you have a presentation?

2:58

I don't know.

3:00

Okay.

3:04

That's okay.

3:05

Um, so why don't you just tell us a little bit your about about yourself?

3:08

Um, what you're proposing to do with the restaurants, give us a little background.

3:13

Sure.

3:14

Um I'm 49 years old.

3:15

I've been in the restaurant business for almost 25 years.

3:18

Um I've been at Nottingham's for almost 13 years.

3:22

I'm the managing partner.

3:23

Um we plan to keep the restaurant the way it is.

3:26

Um my other partner, Brian Canny, he's just moving on from the uh day-to-day operation, so I'm just resuming what I normally do.

3:34

Um we don't have any major plans.

3:36

We're gonna keep business as it is.

3:45

So how how many years have you been uh operating the restaurant?

3:50

Um I've been at Nottingham's for almost 12 a little bit over 12 years now.

3:55

Uh how much uh uh did you uh involve?

4:00

Um I started off there as the general manager and then I became a small minority owner, and then recently, right after COVID, in the end of 2022, I purchased 15% of it and I became the managing partner in uh in a regular week.

4:20

How long uh how much time uh do you spend there?

4:23

Um currently I'm there between six to seven days a week.

4:27

Um I would say anywhere from 60 to 70 hours a week, and then I usually do a lot of paperwork at my home, so probably about another 10 hours.

4:38

Okay.

4:39

Uh are you well, I guess for the Rack Song in itself.

4:44

Uh was there uh any uh uh alcohol violation?

4:48

Not that I'm aware of, no, not during my time, my tenure, no.

4:54

Okay.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Cannabis Regulation█████████████████████████████████████████████53%
Procedural██████████████17%
Alcohol Regulation████████10%
Community Engagement███████8%
Business Licensing█████6%
Economic Development███4%
Public Engagement██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Howard County Alcoholic Beverage Hearing Board Meeting – May 12, 2026

The Howard County Alcoholic Beverage Hearing Board convened on May 12, 2026, at 6:30 p.m. in the Banneker Room and via WebEx to consider four liquor license applications. All four cases were approved unanimously. The meeting included a change of resident agent, three new license applications, and public testimony in support of two of the new establishments.

Approval of Minutes

  • The board unanimously approved the minutes of the March 24, 2026 meeting. (Chair Chen, Mr. Coleman, Ms. Johnson, Ms. Kim all voted yes.)

Case 1: Change of Resident Agent – Nottingham's

  • Applicant: Robert Jirak, managing partner of Nottingham's, requested approval to replace Brian Kannee as resident agent for the Class D beer, wine & liquor 7-day on-sale license at 8850 Stanford Boulevard, Columbia.
  • Testimony: Mr. Jirak stated he has been at Nottingham’s for 12+ years, working 60–70 hours weekly. He has no knowledge of any alcohol violations during his tenure. He will keep existing management staff, all alcohol awareness certified.
  • Board Discussion: Board members noted the straightforward nature, long tenure, and lack of violations. Unanimous approval. Mr. Jirak waived appeal.

Case 2: New License – Bandh Darwaza

  • Applicants: Venkata Krishna Kukatla, Jay Parimal Gandhi, and Mukesh Bhikhubhai Panchal (as required U.S. citizen) for Bandh Darwaza, LLC, a 1,463 sq. ft. Indian speakeasy at 6000 Merriweather Drive, Suite B-135, Columbia.
  • Testimony: Consultant Martin Johnson presented. Mr. Gandhi described the concept: a cocktail bar using natural Indian ingredients (fennel, cumin, turmeric, curry leaf) and traditional methods (infusion, clarification, fermentation). Only the second Indian speakeasy in the U.S. (first in NYC). 48 indoor seats, 8 bar seats, no outdoor service. Hours: Sun–Thu 4:30 p.m.–11 p.m., Fri–Sat 4:30 p.m.–12 a.m. Opening targeted August 15, 2026. Both Gandhi and Kukatla will be on-site daily (40+ hours/week). All servers will be alcohol awareness certified. No violations. Unanimous approval.
  • Board Discussion: Board lauded the uniqueness and thorough presentation. Applicants waived appeal.

Case 3: New License – Vesper

  • Applicant: David Upton Carney for Vesperee, LLC t/a Vesper, a 1,895 sq. ft. restaurant with a 624 sq. ft. two-level patio at 8210 Main Street, Ellicott City. Requested Class B on/off sale license.
  • Testimony: Mr. Carney, owner of The Wine Bin for 18 years, described an upscale restaurant with a Michelin-starred chef (Rachel Bindle). Seating: ~50 indoors (bar seats 12), 20 on lower patio. Upper patio used as holding area. Hours: Closed Mon–Tue; Wed–Thu 4–10 p.m.; Fri–Sat 4–11 p.m.; Sun 11 a.m.–7 p.m. Over 55% of income from food. No violations at Wine Bin. Proposed policies include ID checking, refusal of service, and training. Seven cameras for monitoring. No live music. Public supporters spoke.
  • Public Testimony:
    • Heather Gatano (Ellicott City resident) spoke in person, emphasizing the need for new restaurants in historic Ellicott City (down six restaurants since pre-flood). She praised Mr. Carney’s community involvement and Chef Rachel’s professionalism.
    • Matt Fleming (Ellicott City resident) spoke via WebEx, voicing strong support, citing Mr. Carney’s expertise and the restaurant as an economic engine.
  • Board Discussion: Board noted Carney’s experience, community support, and unique concept. Unanimous approval. Mr. Carney waived appeal.

Case 4: New License – Ironwood Kitchen

  • Applicants: George Louis Strott and Alan Donald Strott for JCS Food Group, LLC t/a Ironwood Kitchen, a 2,240 sq. ft. restaurant with a 760 sq. ft. front and side patio at 13380 Clarksville Pike, Highland. Requested Class B on/off sale license plus wine corkage permit.
  • Testimony: Consultant Martin Johnson presented. George Strott (50% owner, 18-year GM/executive chef at Michael’s Pub) described American Nouvelle cuisine with French flair. Seating: 55 indoors, 18 bar seats. Bar area includes a divider for mingling. Patios fenced with aluminum fencing; signage will indicate no alcohol beyond. Hours: 11 a.m.–11 p.m. daily. 30–35% of income from alcohol. Training program including hosting alcohol awareness classes for other restaurants. Alan Strott (50% owner) will work ~20 hours/week; his other business is a hair salon. No violations. Public supporters in attendance but no formal testimony.
  • Board Discussion: Board noted the applicants’ extensive experience (George Strott 75–80 hours/week) and strong community support. Unanimous approval. Applicants waived appeal.

Key Outcomes

  • All four applications were approved unanimously by the board (Chair Chen, Mr. Coleman, Ms. Johnson, Ms. Kim).
  • Each applicant waived the right to appeal.
  • The board acknowledged strong community support for Vesper and Ironwood Kitchen.
  • The next steps for each licensee: complete any remaining construction and inspections before opening.

Note: The meeting began at 6:30 p.m., though the system timestamp noted 11:30 a.m. UTC. The correct local time per the agenda is used.

Meeting Transcript

Is being recorded and summarized. Mr. Chen, we're we're recording and we can start the meeting now. Sure. Thank you. Welcome to the May 12th Howard County Alcoholic Beverage Hearing Board Hearing. There will be four cases in front of us before we discuss the cases. Uh meeting minutes. If there are any changes or uh disagreement, please let me know now. If not, um I I'd like to have uh uh proposal. I propose that we accept the minutes of the March 24th meeting. Chair Chen. Yes, Mr. Coleman. Yes, Miss Johnson? Yes, Miss Kim. Yes. Great, thank you. So the first matter in front of us is the change of uh resident agent uh for a club beer wine and a liquor license uh from Nottingham L L C L L C treating as the Nottingham's uh in the name of uh Brian Penny uh to the individual named Robert Dirac for this uh 7,826 square feet of tarman with uh 1600 square feet patio located at uh 8850 Stanford Boulevard Columbia, Maryland. Uh and this is I believe it's a pro se and Mr. Chair, before we proceed um all of the documents on fire incorporated by reference here thank you, Jr. Durek is here. Yes, he is in the room. Okay, uh Mr. Direct, please raise your right hand. Do you promise that the testimony that you are going to give today will be the truth votes, nothing but the truth? I do. Okay. Please state your name and address for the record. Uh my name is Robert Gyrak. My resident address is 996 Wamper Lane, Westminster, Maryland, 21158. Okay, thank you. Now you can proceed. Do you have a presentation? I don't know. Okay. That's okay. Um, so why don't you just tell us a little bit your about about yourself? Um, what you're proposing to do with the restaurants, give us a little background. Sure. Um I'm 49 years old. I've been in the restaurant business for almost 25 years. Um I've been at Nottingham's for almost 13 years. I'm the managing partner. Um we plan to keep the restaurant the way it is. Um my other partner, Brian Canny, he's just moving on from the uh day-to-day operation, so I'm just resuming what I normally do. Um we don't have any major plans. We're gonna keep business as it is. So how how many years have you been uh operating the restaurant? Um I've been at Nottingham's for almost 12 a little bit over 12 years now.

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