BOSTON – You can once again grab a cocktail to go in Massachusetts. Gov. Maura Healey has signed a supplemental bill that makes to-go cocktails a permanent fixture at restaurants in the state.
Customers can buy up to 64 ounces of a mixed cocktail alongside a food purchase. The drinks must be kept in a sealed container and transported in the trunk of a car or a place “that is not considered the passenger area,” legislation says
Pandemic-era legislation becomes permanent
Cocktails to go were first legalized in Massachusetts in 2020, months after the COVID pandemic began, but only on a temporary basis. A temporary measure allowing their sale had expired on April 1.
“Massachusetts consumers, restaurants and bars can all toast to the fact that cocktails to-go are here to stay,” Andy Deloney of the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States said in a statement. “During the pandemic, cocktails to-go were a critical source of revenue for many businesses, and now, the increased convenience and stability they offer is permanent.”