North Carolina legalizes takeout and delivery cocktails

North Carolinians can now get their favorite margarita delivered right to their door — and they can walk around an airport with a drink — after Gov. Roy Cooper signed into law this week the permanent legalization of to-go and delivery cocktails .

Catch up quick: The state temporarily allowed to-go and delivery cocktails as part of a pandemic-era exception meant to boost restaurants and bars decimated by sales losses. That legalization ended in 2021.

• Cooper's recent signature makes to-go and delivery cocktails permanently legal.

How it works: To-go and delivery wine and cocktails must be less than 24 ounces, sealed and sold with food under the new law.

• It also allows ABC stores to sell gift cards and open on New Year's Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day.
• Airport travelers can now buy alcoholic beverages under 16 ounces from airport establishments and consume them throughout the TSA-screened portion of the terminal while waiting for flights under the new law.

Yes, but: The new law didn't change the state's "happy hour" restrictions. Bars and restaurants still can only offer food specials for short periods of a day. Any alcohol discounts must be offered all day.

Reality check: That pandemic-era allowance of to-go and delivery cocktails was not a lifesaver some hoped it would be for restaurants and bars in North Carolina, according to interviews Axios conducted with several businesses, nor was it a major new revenue source.

Yes, but: Some restaurants across the state say the new change will give them a bump in sales — or at least hope it will.

What they're saying: DoorDash, the delivery service, praised the measure.

• Staffers who deliver orders via DoorDash (called Dashers) make nearly 20% more on deliveries with alcohol compared with deliveries without, according to the company.
• Chad Horrell, DoorDash's senior manager of government relations in North Carolina, said in a statement that the bill expands "economic opportunities for merchants and Dashers alike while providing greater choice for consumers across the state."

The big picture: North Carolina is the 29th state to legalize to-go cocktails, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States .