Alcohol-to-go abruptly ends in New York

NEW YORK - You can no longer get cocktails and wine to go from your favorite restaurants in New York, as the state's alcohol-to-go rules effectively ended when Governor Andrew Cuomo lifted a pandemic-related state of emergency.

The news is a major disappointment to customers, but even more so to restaurants who say that the provision had been helping them bounce back from the pandemic. 

"It's such a letdown, the idea that I can't go to my favorite spot that I've been going to for over a year now to get my drink to go and then go to the park and enjoy it? It's a little bit of sadness," said a patron at Bloom's Tavern in Midtown Manhattan.

"Last year it was helping us sell $2,000-3,000 a week, now it's down to about $500-$600 a week, but it still counts," said Noel Donovan, a Managing Partner at Bloom's Tavern. 

The state legislature failed to pass a bill that would've made alcohol-to-go permanent, and now the New York City Hospitality Alliance is calling on lawmakers to act to help restaurants trying to recover from the pandemic.

"We need the legislature to come back, reinstate this popular policy of alcohol-to-go," said Andrew Rigie of the NYC Hospitality Alliance.

Mayor Bill de Blasio also weighed in saying he thought the program should be continued while New York City's recovery continues. 

Under current state law, beer-to-go is still allowed, but cocktails to-go are no longer permitted.

The state Liquor Authority says that it is ready to work with legislators when they want to move forward with making alcohol-to-go permanent.