KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Restaurants in Kansas City that have temporarily changed their business models to serve customers with to-go orders are now pushing for Missouri lawmakers to make to-go cocktails permanently legal.
Mission Taco Joint owner Adam Tilford said to-go margaritas have kept his restaurants afloat.
"It allowed us to bring back more staff to our South Plaza store," he said. "It was one of the reasons we decided to open our Crossroads store and bring another dozen people and employ them there."
Tilford and the Missouri Restaurant Association initially lobbied the Missouri Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Control to get a waiver for restaurants, allowing establishments to sell and repackage alcohol beverages to-go.
Usually to-go alcohol must be sold in its original packaging.
The Missouri Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Control extended the order until June 15.
"It’s been a nice way to enhance a normal experience," Leslie Newsam, who owns the Antler Room, said. "Not only are you getting your food, but you’re getting your beverage."
The Antler Room sells beer, wine, and mixed drinks in mason jars at a retail price in addition to food.
"We make them during downtime we have between the normal lunch and dinner rush," Newsam said. "There’s not much labor going in, because the staff is already here."
Tilford was not able to get lawmakers, who wrapped up the legislative session Friday night, to pass a bill making cocktails to-go a permanent thing, but he said he will try next year.
"Who knows what the restaurant scene looks like post-COVID 19, but I imagine we are still going to be seeing an uptick in to-go," Tilford said. "Really, all we are trying to do is take a little piece of that act, a little piece of the pie back that we had and started losing when a lot of the takeout and delivery started happening."
