A high street restaurant owner claims neighbours have no right to complain about noise - because they already live near a busy road.

Mehmet Dari launched A La Turka inside the former Jobcentre in Whitstable a year ago amid opposition from nearby residents.

The restaurateur has now been accused of breaching two of the four licensing objectives set by Canterbury City Council – preventing public nuisance and protecting children from harm.

Neighbours claim their peace is being disturbed by the use of the back gate for taking out bins and deliveries, as well as the garden being used after its licensed hours.

A dozen of them have joined forces and submitted their concerns to the city council.

And the authority has confirmed a licensing review has been pencilled in for January.

But Mr Dari – who has branches in Canterbury, Herne Bay and Ramsgate – says he has tried to work with residents to address concerns but believes they should accept the noise as they live near a busy high street.

“I think it is unfair how they are treating us,” he said, referring to both his neighbours and the council.

“We have spent a huge amount of money on the property to make it nice and bring it back to life.

“We pay up to £30,000 in business rates.

“Our neighbours are living behind but they should accept they are near a high street.

“We have not done anything bad, like clubbing, partying or discoing.”

Mr Dari says he has tried to work with residents – something his neighbours dispute – but claims they are pushing for him not to use the garden.

And he denies he has breached any of the licensing objectives or any conditions set by the council.

“Everybody can see the building was derelict for years but look at what it is now,” Mr Dari added.

“A La Turka brings jobs and enjoyment, it is good for the economy and helps local people have a good time.

“There are empty buildings in town, such as Lloyds bank and Prezzo, and if someone brings something to the town we should support them.”

The building was vacant for five years after Jobcentre closed down and before it was a pub.

Mr Dari's proposals to expand the building, by constructing an outdoor dining area, were met with opposition from residents who feared it would spark an increase in noise and a loss of privacy.

Concerns were also raised that the area would be getting another establishment selling booze, despite there already being a number in the area.

But Mr Dari was given the go-ahead and opened in December last year.

“Some residents moved here when Jobcentre closed but they should know it is commercial property and would be up and running again,” he said.

“We work with our neighbours but they are trying to kill our business.

“We will defend our customers. This is not my private luxury - this is for the area.

“Thousands of people enjoy A La Turka and if we did not have them, we could not be there.

“We will fight for our customers and restaurant so we do not become empty like other premises in Whitstable.”

Speaking to neighbours in the area this week, one person says she was forced to spend about £2,000 on secondary glazing to help eliminate noise.

She says her main concern is the use of the back gate for the removal of waste bins and deliveries.

“Children have used the restaurant garden as a playground..."

“Every time bins are moved and all these deliveries take place, there are a lot of disturbing, trundling noises, the voices of the workers, their smoking and this can sometimes go on after 10pm,” she said.

“It is often at 8pm or 9pm which is very late for bins to be dealt with.”

She says the “trundling” noises from the bins make her “very tense” and it impacts her sleep.

But she stresses it has never been residents’ ambition to close the restaurant.

“We live in a built-up area and we accept changes will take place but conditions were set by the licensing committee in February 2022 and if they had been adhered to, we could have lived in mutual harmony,” she added.

“Our lives will never be as peaceful as they were and we accept that, but the conditions are being broken daily and nobody seems to be able to do anything about it.”

Other concerns include security lights being triggered late at night, lights from the restaurant being “very twinkly” and the use of the garden area after 10pm - which must be closed off at this time according to licensing conditions.

There are separate concerns about noise from a flue that emits smoke, but this is related to an ongoing planning application.

In a complaint to the city council, another neighbour said: “The public nuisance includes noise from customers and the behaviour of their children during the day.

“This particularly disturbs us, as the children have played ball against the wall of our house, thrown cushions over the wall, and used the restaurant garden as a playground.

“Another nuisance is caused by the extraction flue, which not only makes a constant noise, but emits smoke, fumes and soot through our open windows, which are just metres away from the flue and the restaurant's dining area.

“The soot is particularly distressing, with many of the surfaces in our house speckled with the smuts.”

Gorrell councillor Chris Cornell has backed residents’ efforts to review A La Turka’s licence.

He has supported the concerns of neighbours, who say the “small strip garden is unsuitable for regular use - particularly at night”.

“Following earlier comments in a previous licensing hearing that Mr Dari was willing to speak with the local community, I have tried and failed to broker a meeting to bring a solution,” the Labour councillor said.

“I can only think he does not want to listen to his neighbours and is, in part, at fault for them taking a radical step in calling his licence up for review.”

Cllr Cornell suggests adding a condition for the doors to the garden to be locked after 9pm.

City council spokesman Rob Davies confirmed a virtual hearing will be opened on December 20 and adjourned until January 10 for the hearing to proceed in person at the Guildhall.

“I have tried and failed to broker a meeting to bring a solution...”

"The review has been requested by six individuals based on alleged breaches of two of the four licensing objectives - prevention of public nuisance and protection of children from harm,” he said.

"This issue will be discussed at the meeting in January at which conclusions will be drawn."

Mr Dari arrived in the UK as an asylum seeker in 1999 after smuggling himself into Dover on board a ferry.

He absconded attempts to deport him but won his fight to stay in England.

Since then, he learned the English language, and opened his first food outlet in 2000.

He previously ran the Direct Pizza Company takeaway in Herne Bay.