Limited Restaurant License Bonds

In order to sell liquor in a restaurant, a business owner must have the appropriate license. Many restaurants opt for the limited service license. With a limited service liquor license, the restaurant promises that their primary focus will be on selling and serving food to customers and that alcohol is just incidental. This helps to differentiate them from a bar or other business that would need a full liquor license.

When qualifying for a limited service liquor license, the restaurant owner agrees to maintain a certain percentage of business strictly from the sale of food. This percentage can vary by state but is generally more than 60 percent. The license also limits what the restaurant is allowed to sell in terms of alcoholic beverages; often it restricts them to serving only wine and beer.

When applying for such a license, a restaurateur is agreeing to comply with the regulations set out in the license qualifications. Often the restaurant is required to get a special bond to serve as a guarantee backing their signed promise to comply.

The type of bond that a restaurant needs is a surety bond. Surety bonds focus on guaranteeing that certain requirements or behaviors will be followed and, if not, offering a payout of the bond amount. A limited restaurant license bond can be applied for through an insurance agent working with Texas surety bond companies. The surety bond companies will explore the requirements of the license that the restaurant needs the bond for, will take a look at the restaurant business model and the restaurant owner’s history and will determine whether or not they want to issue the bond.

Every state has its own requirements regarding the amount of bond necessary. As an example, Utah requires a $5000 bond for a limited service liquor license. If you want to better understand how it bonds can help your restaurant secure the licensing you need and you want to compare rates, give us a call at 214-284-8888.