Audubon Circle not part of the Fenway, at least when it comes to liquor licenses, board concludes

The Boston Licensing Board today gave Matsu Nori Handroll Bar, 900 Beacon St., the right to allow customers to bring their own beer and wine.

By itself, granting a BYOB license is normally not a big deal. But the city's BYOB regulations are intended to help restaurants in certain neighborhoods with relatively few regular liquor license, so first the board had to determine whether the restaurant, in Audubon Circle, is part of the Fenway, which is a neighborhood that has not suffered from a lack of places to get an adult beverage.

Board members unanimously concluded that, at least when it comes to BYOB, Audubon Circle is not part of the Fenway.

"Once you cross the Pike there on Beacon Street, out towards that way, getting almost into Brookline, I don't see that as being in Fenway," board member Liam Curran said.

At a hearing on Wednesday, Matsu Nori owner Ki Seok Kim said he would only allow BYOB to customers who rent out the entire place for a party or other event, at least until he succeeds in winning or buying his own regular license to serve alcohol.

As long as Kim was before the board, members also asked him about his plans for dealing with pickups by third-party food deliverers, after Audubon Circle Neighborhood Association President Dolores Boogdanian said she was a bit troubled by double parking along Beacon Street by DoorDash and other delivery operators and for food deliveries to the restaurant, especially when she said Kim had promised to use a rear loading dock.

After approving his BYOB license, the board then directed Kim to work with its staff to develop a written plan on what he will do to reduce the impact of food pick-uppers. "It's a very congested neighborhood," board Chairwoman Kathleen Joyce said.

In recent months, the board has been requiring new restaurant operators who plan to offer take-out to file written plans on how to deal with pick-ups by third-party deliverers.