RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — To-go cocktails, a pandemic “lifeline” to restaurants and distilleries during the COVID-19 pandemic, is now permanent and business managers along with customers tell 8News they are excited for the future.
Governor Glenn Youngkin signed a bill into law that made to-go cocktails permanent for businesses that have mixed beverage licenses.
The provision was set to expire July 1 on its second extension after being brought forth by former governor Ralph Northam in April 2020 to aid businesses in the Commonwealth’s hospitality industry that were affected by the pandemic’s economic impacts.
“We had to adjust to the times,” said Southern Railway Taphouse service manager Andrew Sanders. “We had to get ourselves prepared to take care of to-go orders, do every type of thing that we needed to do just so we could keep the doors open and keep it going, and like hiring more people—we kept the same staff and they just had to adjust to new roles.”
Danny Valvoline, of Connecticut, told 8News how he remembered some of the bars and businesses that shut down due to people not being able to go inside and drink or eat when he lived in the Commonwealth during the pandemic.
“When you have a pandemic and the whole world shuts down, essentially that’s going to put a strain on people’s jobs [and] businesses in general,” Valvoline said.
Sanders recalled when restaurants were given the greenlight to sell to-go cocktails and said they were a great boost in revenue. His employee, Savannah Hazelwood, a bartender at the Taphouse, also agreed.
“If you’re adding on another cocktail or two to your bill to take home with you, I mean, it’s additional revenue,” Hazelwood said.
Valvoline echoed the same sentiment as Hazelwood and is excited for what is to come.
“I think it’s just good all-around for everyone. It can benefit the business; it benefits the people,” Valvoline said. “As long as there is some give and take behind it, then I think that it’s a win-win scenario.”
According to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, more than 20 states have made to-go cocktails permanent, with Virginia now added to that list.
