cocktails to-go

Texas bars and restaurants can now sell pre-mixed cocktails to-go

Get a cocktail to-go.

Photo by Denny Culbert

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has freed the margaritas. The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission announced over the weekend that bars and restaurants may now sell pre-mixed cocktails to-go.

Effectively immediately, these establishments may sell cocktails provided their containers are covered with tape and placed in a plastic bag that's sealed with a zip tie. The waiver applies to any bar or restaurant with "permanent food service capabilities," and any cocktail purchase must be accompanied by at least one food item that's been prepared on-site. Diners who purchase a cocktail to-go may not transport it in the passenger cabin of their vehicles.

Previously, bars and restaurants had been permitted to sell cocktail kits with the liquor in its manufacturer-sealed packaging — not that those restrictions stopped Tex-Mex restaurants statewide from selling frozen margaritas in sealed plastic jugs. Beer and wine sales must still be sold in their original packaging.

"Operating during this pandemic has proved an incredible challenge for all segments of the alcoholic beverage industry," TABC executive director Bentley Nettles said in a release. "Opening up the ability for these businesses to sell mixed drinks to go will help ease the burden for many of these struggling businesses."

Earning this wavier has been a priority for the Texas Restaurant Association, which hailed the move. Coming just a day after Gov. Abbott reduced restaurants to 50-percent capacity and closed the state's bars, the ability to sell pre-mixed cocktails to-go could be an important source of revenue for businesses that have already been struggling.

“With restaurants employing more than 1.3 million Texans and representing 51% of the food dollar, we simply cannot afford to let these critical businesses close for good,” TRA president and CEO Emily Williams Knight said in a statement. “Today’s announcement is an important step forward, giving many hope, and so we’re very grateful to Governor Abbott and our partners in the distilled spirits business for working with us to get restaurants some of the critical relief they need.”

cocktails politics

truffle shuffle

Fine dining chef serves up casual sandwich shop in Houston suburb

Photo by Hungry AF Media

Richmond may not be top of mind among the Houston suburbs with destination-worthy restaurants — other than Larry’s Original Mexican, of course — but a new cafe could have sandwich lovers from across greater Houston contemplating a visit to Fort Bend County.

Meet Truffle & Rye Market & Café. The new restaurant, which celebrated its grand opening earlier this month, serves breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday. In the morning, look for freshly baked pastries such as muffins and banana bread alongside breakfast sandwiches that are made with organic sourdough bagels.

Lunch is built around sandwiches made with freshly baked schiacciata bread, an Italian-style flatbread that’s similar to focaccia, that Truffle & Rye sources from Houston's Artisan Bread Gallery. They include The Pig (mortadella, stracciatella, pistachio, pesto, and pistachio crumble), The Boar (spicy salami, whipped ricotta cheese, Italian pepper spread, and arugula), and The Bird (roasted turkey, basil pesto, provolone, roasted tomato, and arugula). Three salads are also available.

Beverage options include a full coffee program, including lattes made with Mill-King milk and house made syrups, as well as teas, lemonade, and bottles of wine.

Truffle and Rye restaurant Kaitlyn Chavez and Joey Chavez Truffle and Rye owners Kaitlyn and Joey Chavez.Courtesy of Truffle & Rye Market & Café

Photo by Hungry AF Media

The Bird is made with turkey, pesto, provolone, and roasted tomatoes.

Chef Joey Chavez and his wife Kaitlyn are the husband-and-wife duo behind Truffle & Rye. Prior to launching his private chef company The Hidden Truffle, chef Chavez worked at a number of notable restaurants, including The French Laundry, Thomas Keller’s legendary, three-star Michelin fine dining restaurant in California; the Caribou Club in Aspen; and Brennan’s of Houston, where he had a brief stint as executive chef. Kaitlyn Chavez also brings top-level hospitality experience, having worked for The Ritz Carlton luxury hotel chain.

“We built The Hidden Truffle around private dining and elevated experiences,” Kaitlyn shares. “But we kept coming back to the idea of wanting something for our community, somewhere people could come in regularly, feel taken care of, and enjoy food that still holds that same level of quality.”

While the restaurant won’t serve dinner daily, it will be open on select nights for wine tastings, sourdough classes, pop-up dinners, and other happenings.

Although he has a fine dining background, chef Chavez said he’s excited to bring this more casual concept to Richmond. “We wanted to build something we would want to go to ourselves,” he said. “A place where the food is intentional, the ingredients matter, and people feel comfortable coming in multiple times a week.”

Truffle & Rye is located in Richmond at 107 S. Third Street. It opens at 7 am Monday-Thursday and 8 am on Friday and Saturday.

news-you-can-eat openings