La’Caj owner seeks clarity on Prince George’s entertainment permit

La’Caj’s live entertainment helped turn the Camp Springs restaurant into a neighborhood draw, bringing in customers and community members who came for more than food. Now owner Monique Rose Sneed is asking Prince George’s County officials to spell out exactly what entertainment is allowed, after recent restrictions on the business pushed her to start a Change.org petition.

The dispute goes to the heart of how county rules shape nightlife, staffing and revenue for small restaurants. La’Caj is a Latin and Cajun fusion restaurant in Prince George’s County, and Sneed’s complaint has become a test of whether entertainment permits are clear enough for owners to plan around them or whether the rules shift in ways that make compliance harder to predict.

Prince George’s County’s Board of License Commissioners oversees alcoholic beverage licensing and entertainment permits, and county guidance says the board is authorized under Section 26-1103 of Maryland’s Alcoholic Beverages Article to issue a Special Entertainment Permit. The board says it enforces alcohol beverage laws through inspections, compliance and transparency, and it holds public hearings for entertainment-permit requests. A virtual hearing is listed for Tuesday, June 23, 2026.

The county’s entertainment-permit guide says a Special Entertainment Permit allows entertainment, patron dancing with the proper county permit and cover charges under board conditions. The annual fee is $1,500. A Family Entertainment Permit costs $250 a year, but it is limited to rooms with seating for no more than 110 people and requires at least 60 percent of average daily receipts to come from food sales. The guide also says changes in entertainment must be approved by the board, and an amended security plan must be submitted to police.

Those rules matter beyond one restaurant. In April 2026, county council members introduced bills intended to make it easier to attract more restaurants and speed up the permitting process, a sign that officials already know the county’s rules can slow growth. That broader push makes La’Caj’s case more than a licensing dispute. It is a local test of whether Prince George’s County can support live-music venues, protect public safety and give restaurant owners a permitting system they can understand before they invest.