Nick Palmeri is one of the lucky ones, when it comes to Las Vegas restaurant owners.
Gaetano’s Ristorante is a family business, and it’s busy, using the curbside pickup model in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.
Nick has kept at least nine employees working almost full-time, but he says that number could be higher if restaurants weren’t prohibited from packing cocktails, or even wine and beer, to go with the take out meals.
“I have people who come in every week for my specialty cocktails,” he lamented.
The problem is the type of license
Only restaurants with a license that directly permits the sale of packaged goods for off-premise consumption are allowed to sell beer or wine to customers ordering meals for take out.
That type of license is usually restricted to urban lounges and taverns, and allow liquor sales for pickup orders only, not for delivery. The only businesses that can legally deliver alcohol, now that the governor has closed liquor stores as nonessential, are the large grocery store chains.
Jeff Wyatt, the proprietor of the French restaurant and wine shop Marche Bacchus, has three different licenses for the sale of alcohol, but none of them allows a bottle of wine to be sold with a takeout meal.
As a result, Wyatt has had to temporarily close Marche Bacchus, something he wouldn’t have had to do if the regulations were otherwise applied.
“In that case, I could have reduced my menu down to something that could be executed by one of my line cooks, and then I could have also sold package liquor,” said Wyatt.
David Samuels, the owner of Carlito’s Burritos in Henderson, received a cease-and-desist order on March 5 from the city, telling him that the license allowing him to sell packaged wine, beer and spirits-based drinks for off-premise consumption did not include the margaritas the restaurant has been offering for takeout.
“The city said that if we put a margarita in a bottle, that we’re manufacturing liquor,” Samuels said.
So Samuels no longer has those cocktails on the takeout menu and grocery options, but he occasionally will pack them for regular customers who specifically ask.
The owner of the Craft LV liquor catering company, Jehrome Thigpen, said he has approached county and city officials about relaxing the regulations to allow alcohol delivery, during the COVID-19 crisis.
“Unfortunately, they haven’t been willing to budge, so far,” he said. So he’s currently drafting a petition to circulate among the businesses that are affected.
The City of Las Vegas will allow curbside alcohol sales
The city of Las Vegas is launching a plan to support Las Vegas restaurants, allowing restaurants to sell alcohol curbside along with take out meals during the Covid-19 outbreak.
“The city has heard from business owners that this would be very helpful as their businesses are impacted due to the closures related to the coronavirus,” a city spokesperson said.
Restaurant owners can apply for a special, 30-day “Alcohol Time-Limited Permit” that could be renewed depending on whether or not the coronavirus shutdown has been lifted.
A business that already has an alcohol license could then include an alcoholic beverage with a take out meal for curbside pickup.
However, the city will levy a $100 processing fee to obtain the permit and the daily fee would be waived.
Unfortunately for David Samuels of Carlito’s Burritos in Henderson, the special license will only be available to restaurants within the Las Vegas’ city limits.
To apply for the special permit, restaurant owners must apply through their online business license account. Fortunately, the city has stated the permits will be processed in just one to two business days.
Nevada is nearly 2 weeks into Governor Sisolak’s 30-day shutdown. Small businesses are struggling, and hopefully, they’ll weather the storm and bounce back quickly.
