A Sydney restaurant owner is fighting to keep his business open after council banned him for using an outdoor barbecue smoker.
Hornsby Shire Council has issued a ban notice to Smoke Shack BBQ owner Mehdi Moaddab after a series of complaints by neighbours about the smell of brisket and smoke.
“The firebox we have, it’s very clean burning,” Moaddab told 9News Sydney.
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“It’s not a big smoker and I’m using the most expensive wood in Australia.
“There is no business if I can’t cook with this.
“I think this is really unfair, I’m trying to do the right things.”
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The Mount Colah-based business, which opened four months ago, was once a Pizza Hut restaurant.
Moaddab said he has spent a fortune on the refurbishment and has pleaded with council to reconsider their decision.
Hornsby Shire Council planning division group manager James Farrington said there is a “win-win solution” for the restaurant owner and the neighbour, which is to “locate the cooking facility within the premises”.
Moaddab said he invited the neighbours over for dinner but they declined the offer.
“When I came here I knocked on the door and said ‘my name is Mehdi, come over, we’ll make it for you’ but he didn’t want to,” he said.
The council has received five complaints about the smell and the smoke, however Moaddab is unconvinced about that number.
He said without the smoker he will not be able to operate and he will be forced to close down.
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