Cactus Club Café and the law of Wining & Dining

Imagine this: you and a date visit a restaurant and order a bottle of wine while you catch-up, consider the menus, and enjoy the ambience. After the better part of two hours, but before ordering and consuming any food, you order a second bottle of wine.

Is this an entirely innocuous and unremarkable event? Or is it a contravention of the Terms and Conditions that are attached to all Food Primary Liquor Licences in British Columbia, and warrants the licensee suffering a monetary penalty in the amount of $1,000 or a licence suspension of one day?

Unless you are a first time reader of Alcohol & Advocacy, you probably already know where this is going….

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BOOM CHAKALAKA: Ignoring COVID Orders in BC can cost you your liquor licence

Recent decisions published by the Supreme Court of British Columbia and the Liquor & Cannabis Regulation Branch indicate that across British Columbia liquor inspectors and environmental health officers (“EHOs“) have been busy monitoring food and beverage establishments for compliance with COVID related public health orders.

Establishments that refuse to comply risk losing their business and liquor licences in addition to stiff financial penalties.

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Legal Cannabis and your Liquor Licence

On October 17, 2018, non-medical cannabis was legalized in Canada. In December, 2018, British Columbia’s Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch published an information guide to help liquor licensees understand how legalized cannabis may impact their businesses.  A copy of the guide can be found here.

The following topics covered in the publication are of particular interest to readers of Alcohol & Advocacy:

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