Restaurant operators rethink alcohol service as COVID-19 pandemic fadesRestaurant operators rethink alcohol service as COVID-19 pandemic fades

With bars and restaurants around the country severely limited in their onsite offerings for much of the last 18 months, operators tried a variety of strategies to generate revenues from the traditionally profitable alcoholic beverage side of the business.

A handful launched virtual wine tastings and other events; some added food to their menus to comply with local requirements; many tried selling cocktails to go; still others merely discounted their alcohol inventory to move it out the door in bottles.

What many operators have discovered, however, is that consumers are eager to return to their pre-pandemic socializing routines in bars and restaurants in the wake of widespread vaccinations and the decline in COVID-19 infections.

Den Hospital...