2012 Connecticut General Statutes
Title 30 - Intoxicating Liquors
Chapter 545 - Liquor Control Act
Section 30-22 - Restaurant permit. Wine ordered with restaurant meals.

(a) A restaurant permit shall allow the retail sale of alcoholic liquor to be consumed on the premises of a restaurant. A restaurant patron shall be allowed to remove one unsealed bottle of wine for off-premises consumption provided the patron has purchased such bottle of wine at such restaurant and has purchased a full course meal at such restaurant and consumed a portion of the bottle of wine with such meal on such restaurant premises. For the purposes of this section, “full course meal” means a diversified selection of food which ordinarily cannot be consumed without the use of tableware and which cannot be conveniently consumed while standing or walking. A restaurant permit, with prior approval of the Department of Consumer Protection, shall allow alcoholic liquor to be served at tables in outside areas which are screened or not screened from public view where permitted by fire, zoning and health regulations. If not required by fire, zoning or health regulations, a fence or wall enclosing such outside areas shall not be required by the Department of Consumer Protection. No fence or wall used to enclose such outside areas shall be less than thirty inches high. The annual fee for a restaurant permit shall be one thousand four hundred fifty dollars.

(b) A restaurant permit for beer shall allow the retail sale of beer and of cider not exceeding six per cent of alcohol by volume to be consumed on the premises of a restaurant. The annual fee for a restaurant permit for beer shall be three hundred dollars.

(c) A restaurant permit for wine and beer shall allow the retail sale of wine and beer and of cider not exceeding six per cent of alcohol by volume to be consumed on the premises of the restaurant. A restaurant patron may remove one unsealed bottle of wine for off-premises consumption provided the patron has purchased a full course meal and consumed a portion of the bottle of wine with such meal on the restaurant premises. The annual fee for a restaurant permit for wine and beer shall be seven hundred dollars.

(d) Repealed by P.A. 77-112, S. 1.

(e) A partially consumed bottle of wine that is to be removed from the premises pursuant to subsection (a) or (c) of this section shall be securely sealed and placed in a bag by the permittee or permittee’s agent or employee prior to removal from the premises.

(f) “Restaurant” means space, in a suitable and permanent building, kept, used, maintained, advertised and held out to the public to be a place where hot meals are regularly served, but which has no sleeping accommodations for the public and which shall be provided with an adequate and sanitary kitchen and dining room and employs at all times an adequate number of employees.

(1949 Rev., S. 4244; 1951, 1953, S. 2159d; 1969, P.A. 349, S. 2; 1972, P.A. 233, S. 2; P.A. 75-641, S. 6; P.A. 77-112, S. 1; P.A. 92-15, S. 1; P.A. 93-139, S. 18; P.A. 95-195, S. 25, 83; P.A. 03-228, S. 1; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 146(d); P.A. 04-11, S. 1; 04-169, S. 17; 04-189, S. 1; P.A. 05-134, S. 2; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 09-3, S. 338.)

History: 1969 act revised provisions so that women could sell liquor at bars, where previously they could not, and prohibited women not involved in sales from standing at bars, where previously they could not “sit or stand” at a bar; 1972 act deleted discriminatory provisions re women at bars; P.A. 75-641 replaced numeric Subsec. indicators with alphabetic indicators; P.A. 77-112 repealed Subsec. (d) which had required that in restaurant premises containing a bar, the bar be located so as to be clearly visible from the entrance, street or sidewalk; P.A. 92-15 amended Subsec. (a) to provide that with prior approval of the department of liquor control, a restaurant permit would allow the serving of alcoholic liquor at tables in outside areas not screened from public view where permitted by fire, zoning or health regulations, to provide that a fence or wall enclosing such outside areas would not be required by the department of liquor control if no fire, zoning or health regulations requires same and to provide that no such fence or wall is to be less than 30 inches high; P.A. 93-139 made technical changes, added the annual fee for each restaurant permit and added Subsec. (e) defining “restaurant”; P.A. 95-195 amended Subsec. (a) by substituting Department of Consumer Protection for Department of Liquor Control, effective July 1, 1995; P.A. 03-228 added provisions in Subsecs. (a) and (c) and added new Subsec. (e) re removal of partially consumed wine ordered with restaurant meals and redesignated existing Subsec. (e) as Subsec. (f); June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 and P.A. 04-169 replaced Department of Consumer Protection with Department of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 04-11 amended Subsec. (a) to permit the serving of alcoholic liquor at tables in outside areas which are screened, in addition to tables in outside areas which are not screened; P.A. 04-189 repealed Sec. 146 of June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, thereby reversing the merger of the Departments of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective June 1, 2004; P.A. 05-134 amended Subsec. (a) to provide that restaurant patron shall be allowed to remove one unsealed bottle of wine for off-premises consumption provided such patron has purchased such bottle of wine and a full course meal at such restaurant, effective June 24, 2005; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 09-3 increased fee in Subsec. (a) from $1,200 to $1,450, increased fee in Subsec. (b) from $240 to $300 and increased fee in Subsec. (c) from $560 to $700.