New law allows hair salons to serve alcoholic drinks, hair salons say wine not?

A new year, a new hairdo and now a relaxing drink. Coffee will be a thing of the past in many California salons. In 2017, salons will be allowed to upgrade their drink menu to include 12 ounces of beer and 6 ounces of wine per customer without a special license — it’s a practice many salons in the past have done, quietly.

“I’m happy about it because it’s a nice thing to offer. We’re kind of limited,” hairstylist Vince Cappa said. Cappa said the salon he works for — J. Russell! Salon in Palm Desert — doesn’t serve alcohol but serves coffee, water and tea. The owner said the drink menu might change after Jan. 1st. “I think it’s relaxing, it’s a treat, anything that’s relaxing I think is good for people,” J.Russell! Salon owner Meg Firestone said. While many salons may accept this new privilege, one restaurant general manager said he hopes they are held to the same standards. “The only issue I have with that is proper training protocol. As managers, we train our servers how to check I.D.’s, how to check out of state I.D.’s,” Stuft Pizza Bar and Grill General Manager Frankie Arrieta said. The Department of Alcohol and Beverage Control said it will. “They will have to abide and ensure that they don’t serve alcohol to minors. They certainly should be checking I.D.’s of people they are serving,” David Bailey with the California Department of Beverage Control said. Hot air balloon rides and limousine services are also exempt from acquiring an alcohol license. Bailey said salons must be licensed with the Department of Consumer Affairs to take advantage of the new law.