After much effort we have FINALLY received the attention of our LA County Supervisors. There is a very important vote before them tomorrow whether or not to support the RESTAURANTS Act of 2020. The Board of Supervisors NEED to hear support from our Hospitality community or their support will die.

Hello hospitality friends,  The 2020 ABC Priority Drawing (AKA the “Liquor License Lottery”) is here!  As you all know, purchasing a full alcohol license can be very expensive – even during COVID-19. However, once a year, the ABC issues a few new “original” licenses and holds a drawing to see who gets them. These new licenses are much cheaper than those at the typical fair market price, so people refer to the Priority Drawing as “The Lottery.” The ABC will hold a second drawing on the same day that allows applicants to search for a license within a different county with lower fair market prices. The ABC refers to this one as the “Inter-County Transfer” Drawing.  Here are the highlights:  The registration … Continued

Friends, LA City Council is considering formal support for one of the most important pieces of federal restaurant COVID-19 recovery legislation (council file #20-0002-S114), the RESTAURANTS ACT HR 7197. This bipartisan, bicameral proposal would support hard-hit independent restaurants through a new $120 billion Revitalization Fund. This lifeline would help independent restaurants deal with the long-term structural challenges facing the industry because of COVID-19 and secure the employment of 11 million workers across 500,000 small businesses, as well as the five million more jobs up and down their supply chains. This is good for the industry, as a WHOLE! We cannot let this get away from us. We have partnered with both the Independent Restaurant Coalition (IRC) and Independent Hospitality Coalition (IHC) in pushing … Continued

Friends,  I hope you are all safe and well. As many of you know, the City of Los Angeles is considering a new program that would simplify the zoning approval for restaurants that wish to serve alcoholic beverages. If you need a refresher on the Restaurant Beverage Program (RBP), you can review my previous posts here and here. On June 25, The City Planning Commission gave their support to RBP and recommended that City Council pass it. However, that was not the final step in the process, and there is still work to do before RBP is official. Right now, we are waiting for City Council to discuss the RBP in its Planning & Land Use and Ad Hoc Job Creation Committees. If … Continued

Restaurant Friends,    TODAY AT NOON the LA City Planning Commission will be taking public comments on the Restaurant Beverage Program. This is a new over-the-counter alcohol authorization with substantially reduced fees and TIMELINES! This could apply for you; the existing operator who wishes to make changes/expansions, upgrade to full liquor, or renew your expired CUP, all with a standard set of operating conditions. WE NEED THIS. The city will not approve this if they don’t know you support it. Please help make this program possible by speaking up!Join us at noon today to voice support for item 10 on the planning commission agenda. To make a public comment, join the video call here or call (669) 900-9128. Use meeting ID: 925 5319 5688 and press #. Press # … Continued

Hello Friends,  I hope you are all safe and well.  ABC licensees looking for ways to maintain social distancing protocols while not losing most of their patron capacity just received some good news:  The Alcoholic Beverage Control recently announced a new round of temporary relief measures intended to support the restaurant industry. In this latest round, the Department created a new permit called ‘COVID-19 Temporary Catering Authorization’ that will permit restaurants in counties that allow on-site dining to expand their ABC licenses into adjacent areas under their control. Unlike the existing ABC procedure to enlarge a licensee’s footprint, which could take months, this authorization will take effect immediately upon submitting an application and paying a $100 fee to the Department.   To obtain … Continued