Billiards Hall and Karaoke Lounge Premises in Ontario: Licences, Capacity, Liquor and the Lease

By Jatin Dua · Broker of Record, RE/MAX Quantum Realty · Updated 18 October 2026 · 8 min read — which licence a pool hall or karaoke lounge needs after Toronto’s 2025 changes, the Mississauga and Brampton rules, how capacity and liquor work, noise and hours, and the lease clauses to negotiate.

Looking for billiards or karaoke lounge space in Toronto or the GTA? Tell me what you need and I will send you units that fit, with the zoning and the lease checked before you commit.

First, which business are you in law?

“Billiards lounge” and “karaoke bar” are marketing words. The city, the zoning examiner and the AGCO each put your business in a category, and the category decides which units you can lease. Work this out before you look at space.

Toronto’s licence changes page links to a Licence Finder tool. Use it, then confirm with Municipal Licensing and Standards before you sign.

Does Toronto still license billiard halls?

Yes, but not under that name. On January 1, 2025, Toronto merged the old Place of Amusement, Billiard Hall, Bowling House and Carnival licences into one Amusement Establishment licence. The City defines it as a business that offers or permits any type of amusement activity for patrons, and lists billiards or pool among the examples. Fitness facilities, recreation centres and community centres are excluded. What the City asks for:

• An approved Zoning Review for Business Licence before you apply, unless you are taking over an existing business with a valid licence in the same category (or one that expired less than three years ago).
• An Occupancy Declaration signed by the property owner or landlord and by you.
• A certificate of insurance showing $1,000,000 commercial general liability.
• An operating information questionnaire, ID and criminal record checks for owners, directors or partners.
• Fees of $477.44 for a new licence ($242.62 application plus $234.77 licence) and $275.60 to renew.

Karaoke is not on the City’s list of amusement activities, so a karaoke business is usually licensed through the food or drinking categories. Ask the City directly if your karaoke rooms are the main business and you do not serve food.

Karaoke rooms and Toronto zoning

Toronto’s zoning by-law treats karaoke rooms inside a restaurant or bar as an entertainment area with a size cap. Under Section 150.100 of By-law 569-2013, the following can together occupy only part of an eating establishment’s interior floor area: an amusement arcade, dance floor, stage, standing audience area, DJ area, “sound room or karaoke room”, a recreation use, and any other entertainment area.

• In the CR, CRE, OR, OG and OM zones: up to 25 per cent of the eating establishment’s interior floor area, to a maximum of 250 m².
• In the EL, E and EO employment zones on a lot abutting a major street: the same 25 per cent and 250 m².
• In those employment zones off a major street, and in the CL zone: up to 6 per cent, to a maximum of 50 m².

So a 400 m² restaurant in a CR zone can dedicate up to 100 m² to karaoke rooms and other entertainment. A concept that is mostly private rooms with a small kitchen will not fit inside an eating establishment and needs a different zoning answer. The zoning by-law’s definitions also matter: a billiards hall or pool hall is a “recreation use”, and “amusement device” specifically excludes billiards.

Mississauga and Brampton rules

Mississauga still issues a billiard hall licence in two classes: Class A, where providing billiard tables is the main business, and Class B, where another business such as a restaurant or pub has one or more tables available to the public. You must list the number of tables and update the licence when that changes. A new licence costs $379.02 and renewal $366.35, and you need a Zoning Certificate of Occupancy; a minor variance or building permit may also be required.

Brampton licenses billiard halls under its Place of Amusement licence, Class C, defined as premises with more than two billiard, pool or bagatelle tables for hire. Brampton’s requirements include zoning review, fire department approval, $2,000,000 commercial general liability insurance, and for billiard halls a letter of approval from the Medical Officer of Health for sanitary conditions and bathrooms. A person over 18 must be on site at all times to supervise, no gambling on games is allowed, and alcohol is not permitted except where the amusement is incidental to an AGCO-licensed business. The fee is $272 and licences expire January 31.

What the unit must have

• Clear, column-free floor. Each table needs room around it for cueing. Columns in the wrong place can cost you a table, and every table is revenue. Lay out the tables on the actual floor plan before you agree on rent.
• Floor strength and level. Slate tables are heavy and must sit level. Upper floors and mezzanines need an engineer’s check.
• Ceiling height and lighting for table lights hung at the right height, without clashing with sprinklers or ductwork.
• Sound separation for karaoke rooms. Each room needs its own wall assembly, door seals and ceiling treatment, plus its own ventilation, since small sealed rooms full of people heat up fast.
• Exits and corridors. Private rooms off a corridor change how people get out in an emergency, so your architect needs to design the exit routes.
• Washrooms sized for the crowd you expect at 11 p.m. on a Saturday, not 3 p.m. on a Tuesday.

Most of this is a change of use from ordinary retail, which usually means a building permit. See my change of use guide.

Capacity and fire safety

The Ontario Fire Code, O. Reg. 213/07, sets occupant load for assembly spaces using a table of floor area per person. For “bowling alleys, pool and billiard rooms” it is 9.30 m² per person, compared with 1.10 m² per person for dining and drinking space and 0.40 m² for standing space. The occupant load is the lower of that calculation and what the exits can serve under the Building Code, and it must be posted if it is over 60 people. A pool hall with a bar area will have different rates for different parts of the floor, and your architect will work them out together. Buildings with an assembly occupancy also need a fire safety plan.

Liquor, noise and hours

Selling drinks means an AGCO liquor sales licence for the premises. The AGCO’s process needs scaled floor plans with the licensed areas outlined, compliance letters from building, fire and public health, possibly a public notice period and a pre-licensing inspection. Show every karaoke room on the plans as part of the licensed area and ask the AGCO how it expects private rooms to be supervised. Liquor can be served between 9 a.m. and 2 a.m. New licences cost $1,055 for two years or $1,355 for four.

In Toronto, a late-night pool lounge with a liquor licence and entertainment will usually meet the test for an Expanded Activity Eating or Drinking Establishment, which comes with a noise control plan. Toronto’s noise by-law limits amplified sound measured inside a neighbour’s living area to 50 dBA or 65 dBC from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. and 42 dBA or 57 dBC overnight, which is why karaoke over or beside apartments is so hard. For the liquor side in more depth, see my bar and pub premises guide.

The lease clauses that matter for a billiards or karaoke lounge

1. Permitted use. Name everything: “billiards and pool hall, private karaoke rooms, licensed bar and restaurant, amusement games, and live and recorded music.” A use clause that says only “restaurant” can be used against you.
2. Licensing condition. Make the lease conditional on the amusement or food licence, a zoning confirmation of your floor plan, and the AGCO liquor licence if you serve alcohol.
3. Hours. Late-night operation every day, including access after closing for cleaning.
4. Noise. A realistic standard tied to the noise by-law and to the acoustic work you will install, and a landlord acknowledgement that music and singing are part of the permitted use.
5. Landlord’s work and allowance. Washrooms, HVAC capacity for many small rooms, and electrical for lighting and sound systems.
6. Floor loading and alterations. Landlord consent to install heavy tables and build sound-rated rooms, with clear rules on removal at the end.
7. Exclusive. No other billiards hall, karaoke business or games lounge in the property.
8. Security and conduct. Expect the landlord to want rules about late-night patrons and parking lot behaviour. Agree a reasonable version now.

Deal-killers to check on a viewing

• Apartments directly above, or a shared wall with a residential unit.
• Columns that cost you two or more tables.
• A zoning answer that allows an eating establishment but not the entertainment floor area you need.
• A landlord who will not allow late hours or alcohol.
• A single exit, or exits that cannot serve the rooms you plan to build.
• HVAC that cannot cool a room full of people singing.
• An existing tenant’s exclusive for a bar, lounge or entertainment use.

For other games-based concepts, such as golf simulators, escape rooms or axe throwing, read my entertainment venue premises guide.

Where I fit

I help billiards, karaoke and games lounge operators find space across Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton and the GTA, starting from the layout and the zoning rather than the listing photos. I read the lease before you sign, check the use clause, zoning and neighbours, and make sure the deal is conditional on the licences you need. Have a look at my use clause guide before you write an offer.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• City of Toronto — Changes to licensing and zoning bylaws for restaurants, bars and entertainment venues — 2025 merger into Amusement Establishment, categories
• City of Toronto — Amusement Establishment licence — billiards included, fees, insurance, zoning review
• City of Toronto — Zoning By-law 569-2013, Section 150.100 Eating Establishment — karaoke and entertainment area limits
• City of Toronto — Zoning By-law 569-2013, Chapter 800 Definitions — recreation use, amusement device
• City of Mississauga — Apply for a billiard hall licence — Class A and B, fees, zoning certificate
• City of Brampton — Place of Amusement licence requirements — billiard hall definition, rules, fee
• Ontario e-Laws — O. Reg. 213/07: Fire Code — occupant load 9.30 m² for billiard rooms
• AGCO — Apply for a liquor sales licence — process, fees, service hours
• City of Toronto — Noise by-law — amplified sound limits

Related reading

• Bar and pub premises in Ontario
• Entertainment venue premises in Ontario
• Restaurant premises in Ontario
• Change of use permits for commercial tenants
• The commercial lease use clause
• The use clause in a commercial lease