The Bridge Hotel was forced to close prematurely on Saturday night after being overwhelmed with patrons looking to gain entry to Bridge Street venue.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The hotel's management issued a statement on Facebook on Saturday night, acknowledging a large, but unsolicited crowd, gathered at its venue.
"In response to this situation, the crowd was not given access to our premises and we closed our bar early," the statement said.
READ MORE:
A member of the establishment's management said the venue was "totally blindsided" by the barrage and said it was "out of their control."
"We had groups walking from all angles and numerous cars dropping people off," the spokesman said.
Police were not called to the venue, with management opting to disperse the crowd themselves.
"One of the methods of dispersing a large crowd is to do so without inciting any adverse response," the spokesman said.
"The last thing I wanted was people getting aggressive and unruly because they wanted to have a beer."
The venue typically closes at 1am on Sunday morning, but the bar was shut and glasses collected at about 10.30pm.
"We turned away hundreds of people over the weekend," the spokesman said.
"We're grateful for the support but we have no choice.
"We closed the bar because we want to be responsible and care about our industry and it's the right thing to do."
Coronavirus restrictions allow only 50 patrons to be seated outdoors and 20 patrons to be seated indoors.
