Worcester County’s liquor board drew a line between restaurants and liquor stores last week, rejecting 2-1 an Ocean City restaurateur’s bid to sell canned cocktails at his bayside complex, after hearing objections from competing retailers.
District 24 proprietor Cole Taustin came before the Board of License Commissioners at its Feb. 18 meeting in Snow Hill, asking for permission to offer ready-to-drink liquor cocktails in aluminum cans. The factory-sealed products would be offered at Jay’s Café, the ground-floor deli and coffee shop in the complex, which already sells beer and wine.
Board member Marty Pusey made the motion to approve, but fellow board members Charles Nichols and Reese Cropper III voted no. The board did approve a separate request to allow the enclosure of an exterior deck with glass.
“I will tell you that I personally am just a person that would rather there be stores and restaurants,” said Cropper.
Taustin, 39, is a third-generation proprietor of what used to be The Embers buffet at 24th Street. Since the pandemic, it’s been rebranded and rebuilt as District 24, now a towering three-story entertainment complex featuring the café, a crab house, an arcade, and a fine dining restaurant. The family also operates a mini-golf course next door.
He told the board that when it comes to alcohol sales, demand for beer is down because interest is up “exponentially” for ready-to-drink cocktails in cans, and he wants to cater to those customers. He also said they want to be able to sell bottles of liquor offered during tastings and pairings, especially in the off-season.