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Friday, October 6, 2006
Some restaurants blow their chance to take advantage of wine doggy-bag law
Why in the world wouldn’t every fine-dining restaurant in Ohio rush to take advantage of the new state law that took effect two weeks ago that allows diners to take home their leftover wine in doggy bags?
I’m left pondering that question after going “Oh-for-two� in my efforts to enjoy the benefits of the new law.
Of course, both of my attempts came at chain restaurants:
(Please click on “continue reading” below…)
Brio Tuscan Grille and The Cheesecake Factory, both in The Greene, turned me down cold. But based on the comments of other Dayton-area diners on Uncorked (www.daytondailynews.com/wineblog), locally owned, independent restaurants have embraced the law with greater gusto.
And why not? Allowing diners to take home leftover wine helps restaurants sell more wine. Customers get a greater variety, since only a handful of wines are available by the glass and the bottle list is usually far more extensive. And the practice encourages moderation: diners will not feel compelled to finish off a bottle of pricey wine to avoid being wasteful. They can take the wine with them and enjoy it the next day — or even later that night — at home.
A win-win. A no-brainer. Or so it seems.
Yet the two chains I visited treat the new law like leprosy. That’s their right — the new law does not require restaurants to allow their guests to take home wine. But I certainly think such a refusal puts a restaurant at a competitive disadvantage.
Howard Gordon, the marketing vice president for California-based Cheesecake Factory (check out my review of the restaurant from today’s DDN), is himself quite a wine enthusiast, and he says the chain is, in effect, working on it and may soon allow leftover wine to be taken home. A manager at Brio, which is based in Columbus, likewise said his chain may re-examine the policy.
But this comes a day late and a dollar short. The “merlot-to-go� legislation was widely publicized when it was signed by Gov. Taft in June, and restaurants had 90 days to gear up before the law took effect.
There may have been some initial confusion over the law’s requirement that the restaurants reseal bottles “in such a manner that it is visibly apparent if the bottle has been subsequently opened or tampered with.� But several businesses that specialize in wine to-go bags stepped in quickly. The Ohio Restaurant Association entered into a partnership in September with California-based WineDoggyBag.com to become its “exclusive supplier� of wine doggy bags. Restaurant owners and managers wouldn’t have to break a sweat to find other alternatives from businesses such as Togobrand.com and Beerandwinespecialists.com, both of which have special deals going on for Ohio restaurants.
Those restaurants that embraced the opportunity are reaping benefits. Mary Kay Smith, co-proprietor of The Winds, said she has seen a greater willingness of customers to buy a bottle of wine at lunchtime, drink a glass with their midday meal, then take home the leftovers for their dinner that night. In an earlier comment on this blog, Smith indicated she’s excited about the new law: “Finally, customers are allowed to be grownups and take home what they paid for,� she wrote.
Exactly.
Too bad not everyone got that message.
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
PS Here’s what the new wine-to-go law says: Diners can take home wine they’ve purchased at restaurants if the restaurants agree and if:
(1) The opened bottle of wine is securely resealed by the permit holder or an employee of the permit holder before the bottle is removed from the premises. The bottle must be secured in such a manner that it is visibly apparent if the bottle has been subsequently opened or tampered with. (2) The opened bottle of wine that is resealed is stored in the trunk of a motor vehicle or, if the motor vehicle does not have a trunk, behind the last upright seat or in an area not normally occupied by the driver or passengers and not easily accessible by the driver.Tweet
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