The Kentucky Court of Appeals affirmed a local decision that a Cattleman’s Roadhouse restaurant could open in the Winchester Plaza without violating a covenant with Applebee’s.

The opinion was issued Friday from a 2017 case in Clark Circuit Court between the Nunamaker Family Limited Partnership and RMH Franchise Corp. which, respectively, own the property and operate the Applebee’s restaurant, and Winchester Plaza LLC.

The shopping center sought a decision by a judge that locating a Cattleman’s restaurant on the property would not violate its covenant related to Applebee’s. The covenant, signed in 1995, prohibited the shopping center from opening another “casual dining restaurant and bar” as long as Applebee’s operated on the property.

According to court documents, Cattleman’s would serve food and alcohol, but there would not be an open bar space within the restaurant. The drinks would be prepared elsewhere out of public view.

Nunamaker and RMH believed that violated the covenant and sought its own judgement.

In December 2017, Clark Circuit Judge Jean Chenault Logue found the covenant did not prevent other restaurants that serve food and alcohol from opening in the shopping center, provided there was not a public bar space within.

“… (W) e agree with the trial court that the Restrictive Covenant does not preclude a restaurant serving alcohol from operating in the Shopping Center Property,” the Court of Appeal judges wrote. “Rather, the Restrictive Covenant only prohibits a casual dining restaurant with a public bar.”

Winchester-Clark County Industrial Development Authority Director Todd Denham said nothing has been finalized with Cattleman’s opening in Winchester.

“We continue to work with Cattleman’s in hopes of getting them here,” he said. “We’re working on several sites.”