Get Your Drinks and Run | The Source Weekly - Bend

Get Your Drinks and Run

A sampling of offerings from local bars, now offering drinks to go

It’s official, and available for only a limited time: Oregon now allows restaurants and bars to sell mixed drinks to customers buying takeout or delivery—so long as those drinks come with a “substantial food item.”

On Dec. 23, Gov. Kate Brown signed into law SB 1801, also known as the Restaurant Relief Act of 2020, which allowed establishments to sell and deliver cocktails that come in a sealed container. According to the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, there’s no limit on the size of those containers. However, the original language of the bill states, “not more than two mixed drinks or single servings of wine may be ordered,” so if you were hoping for a jug-sized single margarita that would set you up for crazy-town in one fell swoop, you’re going to have to reassess.

Get Your Drinks and Run
Courtesy Hola!
Kick off 2021 with cocktails to go, alongside your favorite food items, of course.

With the new bill—which sunsets 60 days after Oregon’s current State of Emergency ends—plenty of local establishments are already mixing up some creative offerings.

Here are a few to check out.

Dogwood Cocktail Cabin is offering a weekly “Take, Shake & Bake” that includes a few of its signature cocktails, along with take-and-bake pizza from Portland’s Renata Italian restaurant. Enjoy the fare on Dogwood’s “board-walk” and listen to surprise pop-up DJ sets, or take it home to go. Dogwood’s event happens Saturdays from 2 to 8pm for the foreseeable future. Voted Best Bar and Best Specialty Cocktail in our 2020 Best of Central Oregon readers’ poll, this is a no-brainer.

Hola! Restaurants are offering their delicious margaritas and signature Red Cactus at its open locations. Hola! has already added its drink offerings to its DoorDash profile.

Washington Dining & Cocktails
is now offering its Sunday Supper for two, with a new dish each week. Last week it was an 18-ounce ribeye, twice-baked potato gratin, broccoli and a Caesar salad. Order ahead, and get it with a bottle of wine.

La Rosa Mexican Kitchen is offering sealed jars of its signature margaritas and more, ready to go for your drinking pleasure.

El Rancho Grande is also offering margaritas that you can order via DoorDash, with two options available.

…Lots more locations are sure to have drinks to go—but in the continuing saga that is running a bar or restaurant in the age of coronavirus, the next step is going to be doing the unenviable task of figuring out how to add all those drinks to online menus, so that we can all order with abandon.