TOPLINE
New York’s restaurants and bars are getting creative with their menus to comply with new regulations from Gov. Andrew Cuomo barring the sale of alcoholic beverages without food.
An outdoor dining establishment on New York's St. Mark's Place.
Getty ImagesKEY FACTS
Cuomo announced the coronavirus-era requirements last Thursday, which aim to promote responsible social distancing through only permitting the sale of alcohol to patrons who are ordering and eating food (people can still order alcoholic beverages “to-go”).
Chris Turner, the food and beverage director for Lafayette Brewing Company, said it was during Cuomo’s presser that he began drafting a new menu, featuring $1 food items like “a piece of meat,” “just a few grapes, not sure the color” and “literally the smallest piece of cheesecake you’ll ever see.”
“I don’t even think his press conference was done by the time I hit print on it,” Turner told Forbes, though he noted the Buffalo-based brewpub, which has a full kitchen, has since released an upgraded menu with classier “quick & cheap” eats like pretzel fries and fish sticks.
Turner is far from the only one to brainstorm creative workarounds to Cuomo’s order, with Jake Hafner’s Restaurant & Tavern in North Syracuse offering a variety of $1 “compliance items” like a four-ounce cup of whipped cream and a “handful o’ croutons.”
“Cuomo Chips” have also begun to pop up in bars and restaurants around the state that don’t want to charge guests for a full meal, while Buffalo’s Hamburg Brewing reportedly starting offering customers lollipops for a penny along with beer orders.
Matthew Bagely, the owner of Harvey’s Irish Pub in Saratoga Springs, explained his decision to put the Lay’s competitor on his menu: “I mean why not, they’re his chips, they’re his rule so he might as well get some recognition and acknowledgment for another little hurdle we have to jump through as business owners.”
Key Background
The new regulations on alcohol sales were announced as part of a “Three Strikes and You’re Closed” mandate for the state’s restaurants and bars. Establishments that receive three violations of Covid-19 restrictions will be closed for business and stripped of their liquor licenses. These rules respond to high numbers of violations seen in New York since outdoor dining resumed last month.
Crucial Quote
Though Turner is “all for” increased safety and social distancing precautions, he said, “responsible facilities like ours—we’re a family-owned business, a lot of our customers are repeat customers—we are left bearing the weight of irresponsible practices.” Turner said Lafayette Brewing Company has complied with all precautions since the beginning of the pandemic, but this rule seems more targeted toward certain alcohol-only places.
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The Link LonkJuly 21, 2020 at 03:22AM
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‘Cuomo Chips’ And ‘Just A Few Grapes’: New York Bars Launch Comedic $1 Menus To Comply With Gov.’s Alcohol Regulations - Forbes
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Chips
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