A Frinton restaurant can stage night-time entertainment - despite protests from residents.

A meeting heard that a residents' group reneged on a pact to drop its objection if the plan for Anne's restaurant in Connaught Avenue, was scaled down.

Tendring Council licensing sub-committee on Thursday agreed to allow Anne's to have music and dancing from Monday to Saturday between 3pm and 11pm 28 times a year.

Anne's owner Barry Fox said: "We just wanted to give our customers the option of having a leisurely evening meal and be able to dance to a small duet."

Councillors heard a deal had been struck which meant if the number of evenings was cut to six then the association would drop its opposition.

However, Mr Fox said: "We did reduce it but they still objected."

Charles Harrison, for the association, said it had sent in a "letter of observation" but council solicitor Clive Ramsden said it read more like a letter of protest.

The restaurant - best known as a tea house - already has a full drink licence. There will still have to be some alterations so the restaurant meets the rules relating to public entertainment.

Mr Fox said the entertainment would take place about once a fortnight and would cater for a maximum of about 40 people.

Frinton Residents' Association, which was the only objector at the meeting, said that up to 28 occasions was "an unreasonably high number".

Mr Harrison added: "We believe Anne's Restaurant, being part of the conservation area, would cause significant deterioration of the character of the area."

The group added that residents lived around the restaurant "and their amenity of reasonable peace and quiet in unsocial hours must be respected.

"Each of our Tendring resorts has its own attractive characteristics. Would a 'singing and dancing' Anne's Restaurant be typical of Frinton?" it said.

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.