Wellington bar Mishmosh forced to shut after underage person found inside

A popular Wellington bar has had its liquor licence suspended for 48 hours after police found an underage person inside — but the bar seems to be blaming “unruly out of towners” for having to close its doors.

Mishmosh in Courtenay Place was closed over the weekend due to the ruling from the Alcohol Regulatory and Licensing Authority (ARLA), which also revoked the bar manager’s certificate for 28 days.

The decision followed an incident in October when a police check of the venue uncovered a person under the legal age to purchase alcohol inside.

Wellington City Council confirmed the police applied to ARLA for the suspension of Jet Bar and Lounge (T/A Mishmosh) following a compliance check that revealed an underage person was able to purchase alcohol and was located by the Police in the premises.

ARLA issued its judgement on 11 December 2023, suspending the on licence from 8:00 am, 13 January 2024 until 8:00 Monday 15 January 2024.

The ruling says the respondents, Mishmosh, “don’t dispute the grounds of the applications and have agreed to suspension of the on licence and manager’s certificate”.

But a sign on the front door of the bar this morning tells a different story, claiming the weekend closure was due to “the questionable actions of some unruly out of towners”.

“We’ll be back at 4pm Monday 15th January with cold beer and hot snacks.”

The sign on Mishmosh's front door claiming its closure was due to "unruly out of towners". Photo / Ethan Manera

Bars along Wellington’s party precinct, Courtenay Place, have previously claimed the police and government agencies like Te Whatu Ora are “ganging up” on them to prevent them doing business.

In August, the Herald reported El Barrio and Vinyl owner Greig Wilson had been fighting for weeks to open his new cocktail bar, Saint Diablo, but faced months of delays thanks to the decision granting the liquor licence being appealed.

In October, several businesses met with Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau to vent their frustrations over the strict liquor licensing laws, saying it was preventing them from creating a safer, more fun space.

Whanau said a thriving hospitality sector was a key priority for her as mayor.

“While it is not my role to get involved in individual licence applications, I do understand the concerns raised by our hospitality sector about the timeliness and process of decision-making.”

Mishmosh has been contacted for comment.

Vita Molyneux is a Wellington-based journalist who covers breaking news and stories from the capital. She has been a journalist since 2018 and joined the Herald in 2021.