Popular Victoria restaurant fined $7K for serving beer to minor working for the liquor inspector

Little Jumbo, a popular restaurant and cocktail bar in downtown Victoria, has been fined $7,000 after serving a beer to a minor who was working undercover for the B.C. liquor inspector.

Little Jumbo, a popular restaurant and cocktail bar in downtown Victoria, has been fined $7,000 after serving a beer to a minor who was working undercover for the B.C. liquor inspector.

The penalty marks the first infraction for the fine-dining establishment, which opened at 506 Fort St. in August 2013.

Owner Bruce Gillespie called the ordeal "a humbling, humiliating and distressing experience," according to an Oct. 24 decision of the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch.

The provincial liquor inspector entered the restaurant at 5 p.m. on March 24, sitting at a table in the middle of the dining room. Once seated, he relayed a message to his 17-year-old partner waiting in the car outside.

The minor entered the restaurant and sat at the bar, prompting the inspector to move to a table closer to the minor in order to see and hear his interactions with the bar staff.

The minor ordered a pint of Pathway Pale Ale from Category 12 Brewing, according to the liquor branch decision.

Once the beer was placed in front of him, the minor told the bartender something had come up and he needed the bill. The teen paid with cash and left the restaurant immediately.