Cylde’s Tower Oaks Lodge Fined $9,000 for Alcohol Violations

The ruling stems from a sting in August that uncovered underage drinking and other violations

by Andrew Metcalf

Clyde’s Tower Oaks Lodge has been fined $9,000 for alcohol violations found during an undercover sting in August.

The popular Rockville restaurant, which claimed in a hearing in front of the county’s liquor board earlier this month that it’s the highest volume restaurant in the county, had been cited by the Department of Liquor Control for underage drinking, over-serving patrons and not having employee records available for inspection.

The Board of License Commissioners fined Clyde’s $5,000 for ALERT training for staff members, $2,000 for selling alcohol to minors and $2,000 for failing to have records available for inspection.

At the hearing in November, Clyde’s officials said they made significant changes at the restaurant ranging from re-training its employees on checking IDs to ending its half-price wine discount at 9 p.m. on Monday nights. The wine special was identified by police and company officials as a possible source of the problems at the restaurant.

Undercover police officers issued 12 civil citations and made five arrests at the restaurant during an Aug. 11 sting, including seven people cited for having fake IDs, according to police. Police said they had come to the restaurant in the past, responding to problems such as fights in the parking lot. One liquor inspector said he saw one man inside the restaurant drinking from a pitcher of beer, while a woman who could barely stand blew a .231 into a breathalyzer.

Clyde’s CEO John Laytham expressed his disappointment about what police found and assured the commissioners that conditions at the restaurant have improved.