RICHMOND, VA – Legislation introduced in the 2026 General Assembly session seeks to adjust Virginia’s longstanding rules that determine how much food restaurants must sell compared to alcohol to maintain a mixed-beverage license.
House Bill 975, sponsored by Delegate Elizabeth Bennett-Parker, would require mixed-beverage restaurants, caterers, and limited caterers with monthly food sales of at least $4,000 and a kitchen equipped with a ventilation hood system to meet a food-to-beverage sales ratio of at least 30 percent. Other establishments without such facilities would be required to maintain a 45 percent food-to-beverage ratio.
The proposal also mandates that restaurants have a minimum number of seats at tables, as opposed to only counters, to qualify for such licenses.
In addition to tightening compliance standards, the bill directs the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority (ABC) to collect data on how licensees are meeting food-to-beverage requirements and to analyze the impact of these changes on total food and alcohol sales across the state. ABC would be required to submit its findings to the House Committee on General Laws and the Senate Committee on Rehabilitation and Social Services by November 1, 2027.
Currently, Virginia law requires establishments with mixed-beverage licenses to maintain a food-to-beverage ratio to ensure they operate as bona fide restaurants rather than bars. HB 975 aims to refine that balance and improve oversight of license compliance.
HB 975 — Alcoholic beverage control; food-to-beverage ratio; report — introduced by Del. Elizabeth Bennett-Parker, remains pending committee referral in the House.
