Blu42 Sports Lounge Gets OK To Sell Alcohol A Half-Hour Later

Customers at the Blu42 Sports Lounge can drink alcohol a little longer at night.

The Walnut Creek Planning Commission on Thursday night approved a conditional use permit that extends the alcohol hours at the Arroyo Way restaurant from midnight to 12:30 a.m.

The owners of the lounge had asked for an extension to 1:15 a.m., but they seemed pleased with the extra half-hour.

"We're happy to have the extra time," said Matt DeLima, one of the co-owners. "We're looking forward to having the hours extended more in the future."

DeLima noted the alcohol limitations means no one can have an alcoholic beverage in their possession at 12:30 a.m., so selling has to stop a few minutes before that.

Blu42 opened in March in the facility that used to house the Vice Ultra Lounge, which closed in early January after the city cut back its alcohol serving time to 11 p.m.

City officials limited the alcohol hours because they said there had been 30 fights and other violations of the facility's use permit from 2009 to 2012. 

DeLima, who was an owner in the Vice Ultra club, said those charges were exaggerated.

However, he said he wants to cooperate with the city on the new venture.

He said they completely remodeled the lounge and put in a full kitchen to change it from a nightclub to a sports bar with a full menu.

The changes included the addition of 50 tables and 200 chairs.

"We changed our basic operation to become a restaurant," said DeLima. "We did that to accommodate what the city wanted."

Blu42 opened with the 11 p.m. alcohol curfew. That was extended until midnight in July and then again Thursday to 12:30 a.m.

City officials as well as planning commissioners complimented Blu42 owners for the changes they've made.

The lounge is now open from 9 a.m. to 2 a.m. seven days a week. DeLima said they will extend the hours to 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. the first week of January when a full breakfast menu is introduced.