Proposal to let restaurants sell spirits to-go looks to have little chance of approval

Restaurant owners say they would be in favor of selling bottles of liquor to go, as a state lawmaker has suggested as a temporary lifeline. But they shouldn’t hold their breath for the chance.

“They should be allowed to do it to keep themselves up and running and afloat,” said Rizzi Defabo, owner of Rizzo’s Malabar Inn in Crabtree. “Anything they could be allowed to do — do it.”

State Rep. Greg Rothman, R-Cumberland, sent a letter to Gov. Tom Wolf, asking that restaurants holding liquor licenses be permitted to sell bottles of liquor to go. Currently, restaurants can sell beer and wine to go.

“Our restaurant community is in need of a lifeline during this pandemic,” Rothman wrote. “Allowing (restaurant) license liquor facilities to sell spirits to go can be that lifeline while providing an outlet for constituents who have nowhere to go to buy their spirits. I implore you to consider allowing holders of restaurant liquor licenses to be able to sell spirits to go during this emergency.”

Across the state, restaurants have been offering takeout and delivery services since March 16, when Gov. Tom Wolf asked nonessential businesses to close. The move caused some restaurants to rely on alcohol sales to stay afloat, said Melissa Bova, vice president of government affairs at the state Restaurant and Lodging Association.

But the temporary closure of Fine Wine & Spirits stores, which went into effect March 17 to help curb the spread of the coronavirus, cut restaurants off from their main alcohol supplier while forcing some restaurants to rely on alcohol purchases to help boost sales while not operating at full capacity.

At Mr. Mike’s Pub and Pizza along Route 30 in Irwin, several customers asked to purchase bottles of liquor, said owner Angela Furno.

“I do have people that are like, ‘Can I get a vodka and whatever in a glass jug?’ And I say, ‘I can’t do that. I’d lose my liquor license,’ ” Furno said.

She added that the full-service restaurant and bar is currently operating at about 30% capacity.

“I’m sitting on 22 taps right now and a whole bar full of liquor that’s not moving,” Furno said, noting that she is in support of the proposal. “You don’t realize how fast it drives your business, that alcohol helps you drive forward in your business. The markup on food is not that great. The combination really gets you where you need.”

Frank Cekus, assistant general manager at Industry Public House in North Fayette, said between 40% and 50% of sales are from growlers of beer. The restaurant has 60 beers on tap, he said.

Chances appear slim, though, that the request will be granted.

The proposal is not under consideration, said Wolf’s press secretary, Lyndsay Kensinger. The request would require a statutory change, added Elizabeth Brassell, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board.

For members of the state Restaurant and Lodging Association, not restocking bottles of wine could “force them to close their doors sooner rather than later,” Bova said. She doubts Rothman’s proposal would work without reopening the state’s liquor stores.

According to Bova, the proposal would only end up benefiting grocery stores that purchase and distribute wine and spirits to their stores from the state Liquor Control Board’s warehouses. That means restaurants would not have access to the products if Rothman’s request was being considered, unless they purchase from a winery.

“I think Rep. Rothman, his heart is in the right place, but without access it really doesn’t help restaurants,” she said.

The goal for the Restaurant and Lodging Association is to gain access to state stores that could fill soon-to-be-empty restaurant shelves with wine and liquor. The state Liquor Control Board reopened online sales Wednesday, though with limited purchases and with rolling customer access. Even if restaurants can restock their shelves, they still wouldn’t be able to sell spirits to go without a change in state law.

“At the end of the day, our industry is probably hit harder than any other, and we’re just trying to find a way to help our members as much as possible,” Bova said.

Bryan Tarey, owner of Cappy’s Cafe in Shadyside, said about seven out of 10 people who order food to go also order growlers or six-packs of beer. Still, he does not think Rothman’s proposal would benefit restaurants unless they stockpile liquor.

“I don’t think it really would impact a restaurant unless they had a massive investment and they were just sitting on stuff,” he said.