Good News: Cocktails To Go Are Now Permanently Legal In New Jersey

I love a Manhattan, not the city, but the fancy cocktail. A Maker's Mark Manhattan, up, from the Crab's Claw Inn is my go-to drink in the winter. However, I can't make a Manhattan at home to save my life. Despite the fact that I was a bartender for years, it's a drink that's hard to master.

Drinks To Go Is Now Permanent In New Jersey

Now, I don't have to worry about whether I can make my mixed drink up to restaurant quality or not, because drinks to go are now permanent in New Jersey.

Back in 2020, during the COVID Pandemic, getting your liquor, mixed drink, or beer delivered to your house was pretty standard practice.

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Now, according to CBS, New Jersey has just passed a law making drinks to go permanent, so bars and restaurants can sell their mixed cocktails and beer to go all the time.

What Are The Rules About Selling Drinks To Go In NJ?

Drinks to go have to be in their original packaging, and if you order a mixed drink to go, it has to be in a sealed container.

The idea is that this will be an extra revenue stream for small business owners and restaurant owners to help fight rising costs, without having to raise the cost of their menu items.

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I'm a big fan of this idea; my wife and I regularly vacation in New Orleans and Savannah, and part of the reason we think it's so much fun is that we can order a beer to go.

Can You Drink Your To-Go Drink In Public In NJ?

The difference is, in New Jersey you still can't drink your to-go drink in public; you have to consume it in the privacy of your own home.

NJ Joins Connecticut Making To-Go Drinks Permanent

In New York, drinks to go is legal through 2030, and New Jersey now joins Connecticut on the East Coast, making drinks to go a permanent staple.