One of the quirks of our great nation is its patchwork of alcohol laws. Whereas in France or Japan or Kenya, the regulations governing alcohol sales apply across the land, here in the United States there are 51 sets—one for each state and Washington, D.C.
And many states get more granular, giving counties and even individual municipalities the ability to restrict or allow alcohol—usually specific to spirits, sometimes wine, and occasionally beer—sales. Thus we end up with maps like this, showing the dry (red; alcohol sales forbidden), wet (blue; sales allowed), and “moist” or “damp” (yellow; sales allowed in some cities or towns) counties of the United States.
Most of Tennessee is damp and getting wetter. In the November election, nine municipalities and a half-dozen counties voted to allow liquor-by-the-drink sales on premises—which is to say, at restaurants, bars, and event spaces. Several more voted yes on allowing retail package stores and wine sales in grocery stores.
There are obvious reasons to offer alcohol at a restaurant—the chief one being that it can increase check sizes and tips. The National Restaurant Association notes that alcohol makes up more than 20 percent of sales in full-service restaurants, and that 70 percent of people who drink alcohol say that its availability would make them choose one restaurant over another. Plus, Americans doubled their spending on alcohol sales at restaurants and bars between 2013 and 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. That puts a lot of potential profit on the table.
But not everyone is rushing to get a liquor license.
“I researched it. It’s not for us,” says Wendi Potter, owner of Historic Southside Market in Montgomery County, which passed liquor-by-the-drink with 75 percent of the vote. “There’s not enough profit margin, taxes are too high, and the oversight is too stringent.” Historic Southside Market currently sells beer, but Potter says that it’s such a small amount, adding liquor sales wouldn’t be worth it.
Some restaurant owners cite their Christian beliefs as the reason they won’t be selling liquor, or simply say that it’s not a fit for their menu or their usual clientele. Others are taking a measured approach, mulling it over for now.
At least one operator is raring to go—and, in fact, was the reason her county put liquor by the drink on the ballot in the first place. Paula Eleazar has run Cajun Lake Lodge, an event space in Dickson County, about 35 miles west of Nashville, for 15 years. She decided to add a restaurant offering wine and liquor, but when she contacted someone at Tennessee’s Alcoholic Beverage Commission, she found out obtaining a license wasn’t a straightforward process.
“He said that dating back to Prohibition, the state gave the wherewithal to the counties to decide what to do,” she says. “And way back when, Dickson County decided that they would give ability to have liquor-by-the-drink to the cities, and it hadn’t been changed since then. I’m like, really? O.K.”
Eleazar first had to request that county commissioners vote to allow residents to hold a referendum on liquor-by-the-drink sales, which were already legal within Dickson city limits and the towns of White Bluff, Burns, and Charlotte. Once the issue was added to the ballot, Eleazar began to rally the support of fellow restaurateurs and county residents.
Turns out, that was the easy part: People were excited about the prospect, and liquor-by-the-drink sales passed with 79 percent of the vote.
“The county embraced this,” Eleazar says. “It was amazing.”
Eleazar aims to have her restaurant up and running by June, with the bar offering wine and traditional cocktails. Getting the liquor license isn’t cheap—fees start at $650, and the licensee must have a $10,000 bond—but Eleazar says, “I don’t know how you can have a restaurant and not have liquor by the drink. The math just doesn’t work.”
Dickson County Commissioner Mike Petty hopes other venues will follow in Eleazar’s wake. “I’m anxious to see 18, 24, 36 months down the road how many other people have jumped on board with the opportunity to offer this,” he says.
Still, he’s heard from several restaurateurs who have no plans to pursue a license. They’ve told him, “I’ve gotten by without [liquor-by-the-drink] this long—I’m not going to try and fix something that’s not broke.”
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