A Wolverhampton nightclub and restaurant that had its licence revoked after employing an illegal worker is already seeking to reopen under new management.
Calif Bar on Stafford Street was ordered to close by City of Wolverhampton Council earlier this month following a hearing that found owner Isi Lucky Idahor had shown a “total lack of compliance with rules and regulations.” The licensing subcommittee deemed him unfit to run the venue after it emerged he had employed a chef without the right to work in the UK in 2025.
Now, new applicant Lucky Iguodala has applied to reopen the premises as Vivant Lounge, with proposed opening hours from 11am to 5am. Vivant Lounge was registered as a new company on April 19.
Mr Iguodala is also listed as director of Lucky Ventures, which had its application to dissolve the company rejected at the end of last year. The company’s accounts have not been submitted to Companies House since 2023.
Calif Bar was fined £45,000 last year after Home Office immigration enforcement officers discovered Mr Idahor had employed a chef who had no right to work in the UK. That fine remains unpaid.
The woman, who was arrested following the inspection, had held a valid visiting visa from September 2007 to March 2008 but did not leave the UK when it expired and never had permission to work.
Cllr Zee Russell, who chaired the licensing hearing on April 8, told Mr Idahor he appeared to have “no idea” about the process for checking workers’ legal right to work in the UK.
Mr Idahor said he put the club into liquidation in September last year because he could not pay the £45,000 fine or a £14,000 fine imposed by magistrates for hygiene breaches in 2022.
Home Office officers had inspected the club in May last year and were given false personal details by the unnamed chef, who later said she had worked there for about a year, three hours a day, once or twice a week. However, Mr Idahor contradicted this, telling officers she had worked for him for around two months doing small jobs irregularly.
He also claimed he had seen a page from her passport but was unaware she had no right to work in the UK.
West Midlands Police supported the review and the Home Office’s call to revoke the licence.
Mr Idahor was fined £14,000 in 2023 after admitting six breaches of food safety and hygiene regulations at Dudley Magistrates Court. Environmental health officers from the council found an active cockroach infestation at the bar during a routine inspection in 2022. Dirty crockery, surfaces, and pipework were also discovered, along with poor washing facilities. Staff were not properly trained in food safety and hygiene.
