Cocktails-to-go: Temporary legalization has Hudson Valley restaurant owners saying ‘cheers’
Yahoo!money, Jeanne Muchnick, April 14, 2022
Remember Cuomo chips? Well now it’s Hochul hors d’oeuvres. Restaurant owners in Rockland and Westchester are thrilled about a recent change, announced by Gov. Kathy Hochul on April 9, that temporarily legalizes alcohol to go. So too, is the New York State Restaurant Association (NYRSA), which said it will help restaurants dig out of the hole created by the pandemic. In the early days of COVID-19, New York restaurants were given the green light to sell to-go cocktails – accompanied by a snack – as a way to help business while in-person dining was shut down. That ended in June, 2021. The current law allows the sale of sealed takeout alcoholic drinks provided they’re accompanied by a “substantial food order,” through 2025.