Selectmen Vote to Ban “Brown-Bagging” of Alcohol in All Local Restaurants-October 16, 1986

Patrons accustomed to bringing their own wine or beer to local dining establishments will soon have to change their habits. The Board of Selectmen voted last night to institute a comprehensive ban prohibiting customers from carrying alcoholic beverages into any eating place in Norwood—stretching from fast-food chains like McDonald’s and Burger King to local Chinese restaurants.

The ban is scheduled to take effect in January, coinciding with the annual renewal of all town restaurant permits. The decision follows a similar proposal debated three months earlier by neighboring Dedham selectmen, who ultimately chose not to advance an identical ban to their town meeting.

Closing Regulatory Loopholes

Selectmen Chairman Joseph Curran defended the preventative measure, acknowledging that while the town had not experienced specific disturbances related to brown-bagging, the board sought to close potential legal loopholes.

“We haven’t had any problems here, we just wanted to close the loopholes,” Curran explained. “Until the ban idea came up from other towns, I never really knew this (brown-bagging) happened. I guess it was just a case where it would be handled with discretion, that’s why the term brown-bagging.”

Out of 98 total food-serving permits issued across the town, approximately 25 are held by establishments already licensed to sell liquor. However, town officials highlighted four prominent restaurants lacking liquor licenses that will be directly affected by the rule change:

• D’Angelo Inc. on Vanderbilt Avenue
• Hing Wah Restaurant Inc. on Central Avenue
• Shanghai Restaurant on Walpole Street
• Peking Imperial Restaurant

Legal Framing and Uniform Enforcement

Town Counsel Justin Barton advised the board that the regulation must apply universally to all Norwood restaurants to prevent potential legal challenges regarding discrimination. Modeled after existing regulations in Boston, the ban language will be explicitly incorporated onto every common victualer’s license.

The official regulatory text reads:

“Patrons are not permitted to bring alcoholic beverages on the premises for their own consumption. Licensees (that do not have liquor licenses) are not permitted to keep alcoholic beverages on the premises except for a reasonably small quantity that is used in the preparation of certain specialty cooked foods. The board will, in its discretion, determine what is reasonable for this purpose and whether or not it is customary in the preparation of such specialty foods.”

While Curran noted that selectmen do not intend to proactively inspect alcohol inventories at every restaurant, the strict wording gives the board ultimate enforcement flexibility. “We just want the flexibility,” Curran said. “This way, if a restaurant should try to circumvent the rule, we can revoke the license.”

Additionally, the board established a new procedural requirement mandating that every applicant for a common victualer’s license sign a formal stipulation agreeing to all restrictions imposed by selectmen, matching standard municipal practice in Boston.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger