would you consider living above a restaurant? (update: lease signed!)

[Atomic Playboy]

I'm shocked people don't know what a BYOB place is. They are all over Jersey because licenses are so expensive.

BYOB is awesome, you don't get screwed on drinks like every restaurant normally does. Saves literally like $30 a person. Its a factor in where I choose dinner with friends.

Yeah, we don't have those. They're straight up illegal here, because the OLCC, while they will hand out liquor licenses like candy, are also hugely protective of who gets to serve alcohol where. So no BYOB, all liquor stores are state-controlled (which offers the benefit of all prices being identical across the state), no liquor in grocery stores or Costco, no open bottles anywhere in public... Some of it is a bit draconian, especially for a state with thriving beer and wine industries. But it is a lot easier to find booze here than places I've been on the East Coast (at least Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut), so there's that.

 

[rudeguy]

Yeah, we don't have those. They're straight up illegal here, because the OLCC, while they will hand out liquor licenses like candy, are also hugely protective of who gets to serve alcohol where. So no BYOB, all liquor stores are state-controlled (which offers the benefit of all prices being identical across the state), no liquor in grocery stores or Costco, no open bottles anywhere in public... Some of it is a bit draconian, especially for a state with thriving beer and wine industries. But it is a lot easier to find booze here than places I've been on the East Coast (at least Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut), so there's that.

Same here in MI. BYOB is illegal at all retail and restaurants. State regulates booze but liquor licenses are hard to get. There are a ton of restrictions on how many there can be and I'm sure other things. I do know that if a place with a license closes, they can sell the license for more than the restaurant.

And I live in "Beer City, USA".

 

[KeithTalent]

BYOB is illegal here as well, though certain restaurants allow you to bring your own bottle of wine if it's something special that they do not have. Of course they charge you corkage for this...

KT

 

[purbeast0]

I'm shocked people don't know what a BYOB place is. They are all over Jersey because licenses are so expensive.

BYOB is awesome, you don't get screwed on drinks like every restaurant normally does. Saves literally like $30 a person. Its a factor in where I choose dinner with friends.

i know what BYOB means, and i've been to BYOB strip clubs before in multiple states, but i've never once in my life ever heard of a restaurant not serving alcohol (a sit down restaurant that is) and i've been to many across multiple states as well. and the restaurants i've been into that don't serve alcohol (fast food joints) aren't BYOB as far as i know.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

bedroom located directly above kitchen? Pass. Good lord do cooks make a racket.

 

[nageov3t]

BYOB is illegal here as well, though certain restaurants allow you to bring your own bottle of wine if it's something special that they do not have. Of course they charge you corkage for this...

KT

that's common here as well, or at least it's understood to tip a couple extra bucks for providing you with glasses, opening the bottle, and possibly even chilling the wine if applicable.

one plus I'll give this apartment is that it's not in a huge building... it's pretty much the restaurant on the ground floor and then 2 apartments on the second floor (the 2-bedroom I'm looking at, and according to the realtor, the other apartment is a 1-bedroom rented out to an IT guy). so while we've got one huge potential source of pests, it's probably still better than one of those big mega high-rise towers in NYC.

 

[KeithTalent]

i know what BYOB means, and i've been to BYOB strip clubs before in multiple states, but i've never once in my life ever heard of a restaurant not serving alcohol (a sit down restaurant that is) and i've been to many across multiple states as well. and the restaurants i've been into that don't serve alcohol (fast food joints) aren't BYOB as far as i know.

Yes, this as well. Had no idea this was a thing anywhere.

KT

 

[Tommy2000GT]

hipsters hanging out at the front of building is a bigger problem than rats.

 

[Ruptga]

I live above a coffee shop. That's not really the same thing, but I like it fine. As long as the quality/price of the living space is good and you like the location, why not? You should ask about insulation though, specifically for sound. If you suspect it may be an issue you should ask about paying to pull up the flooring and adding insulation. My place was refurbished just a few years ago, so I haven't had any issues with that.

 

[cbrunny]

liquor licenses are super expensive in my state (ranging from $400,000 if you're lucky/connected enough to buy one from the city, or +$1,000,000 resold on the open market) and there are other restrictions associated with them like only being able to own so many (which is why very few chain grocery stores in NJ sell liquor) and towns only being authorized to have so many establishments with a liquor license... so BYOB is pretty commonplace especially in more casual restaurants.

I'm surprised they put up with that in Jersey. That alone boggles my mind. Apart from nanny state, what is the upside of limiting liquor licenses?

I shouldn't talk though. Here in Ontario, you can only buy alcohol from the Government.

 

[Rhezuss]

Never! Imagine from 11am to 12am having constant sound, music, laughter, noise that you can do nothing about? And after the last servings are done, the employees call-in friends to have a drink, crank the music up and have a nice little party?

No effing way.

 

[nageov3t]

I'm surprised they put up with that in Jersey. That alone boggles my mind. Apart from nanny state, what is the upside of limiting liquor licenses?

I'd imagine:

1) you get to control the amount of liquor stores/bars in a town (I'm sure lots of towns wouldn't be happy with a liquor store on every corner)

2) giving out fewer liquor licenses means you get to charge more/demand more bribes to sell them

 

[Scarpozzi]

Just go dine in the restaurants...see if you like the feel of the place and make a decision. We can't see what you see when you're there. You really don't know how safe a place is until a weekend night anyhow...

 

[rudeguy]

I'd imagine:

1) you get to control the amount of liquor stores/bars in a town (I'm sure lots of towns wouldn't be happy with a liquor store on every corner)

2) giving out fewer liquor licenses means you get to charge more/demand more bribes to sell them

3) your corrupt government can extort business owners.

 

[Ruptga]

I'd imagine:

1) you get to control the amount of liquor stores/bars in a town (I'm sure lots of towns wouldn't be happy with a liquor store on every corner)

2) giving out fewer liquor licenses means you get to charge more/demand more bribes to sell them

3) your corrupt government can extort business owners.

What's your favorite branch of government, the Department of Redundancy Department?

 

[rudeguy]

What's your favorite branch of government, the Department of Redundancy Department?

Department of Getting Rid of Government.

 

[TheSlamma]

if it's a good one you are gonna be fat as hell. But then again you will blend into Merica really well the bigger you get.

 

[zinfamous]

Yes, this as well. Had no idea this was a thing anywhere.

KT

A ton of Chicago restaurants are BYOB. And some don't even charge corkage, or it's quite minimal.

caveat: information from when I was living there c. 2003-2008

 

[nageov3t]

apparently the location used to be a Dominos but closed... that should speak well for the quality of the town, right?

 

[mmntech]

Depends what kind of restaurant it was. Indian, greasy spoon, or smoked BBQ joint, forget about it. The smell would get real old real fast.

 

[Slew Foot]

No f'n way. But then Im married with kids.

 

[nageov3t]

update: signed the lease today after a super thorough inspection of the grounds on Saturday.

the apartment ended up being much bigger than it appeared in the online ad and it looks like the pictures online had been taken before a bunch of updates inside (brand new ceiling fans in every room, washer/dryer inside the apartment, bathroom remodel... only somewhat disappointing thing was that the fridge was so bare-bones in such a huge kitchen; would have been a great place for a big fridge. also giving up our dishwasher, which is a sad loss.)

did a close inspection of the grounds, and it looks like the way the building is laid out, our apartment will be above the dining area and it's the studio apartment next door that will get any exhaust from the kitchens. the garbage bins were also a good +30' away from the building, which made me feel better, and the building owner apparently also owns/runs the dry cleaners next door, so presumably he's got some vested interest in the neighborhood not turning to shit... flashlight inspection of all the drawers/cabinets also revealed them to be clean of mice evidence.

went back to the restaurant for dinner around closing time last night and the crowd was pretty chill. seems like it's a date restaurant, not something that attracts a lot of dudebros hanging out.

now to get over the pain of having to shell out $6300 just to walk in the door :/ (broker fee, security deposit, first month's rent)

 

[Iron Woode]

I live above a Chinese restaurant and all is fine. I even posted a thread about it.

In fact I just finished off some fried rice.

 

[notposting]

Same here in MI. BYOB is illegal at all retail and restaurants. State regulates booze but liquor licenses are hard to get. There are a ton of restrictions on how many there can be and I'm sure other things. I do know that if a place with a license closes, they can sell the license for more than the restaurant.

And I live in "Beer City, USA".

We do have BYOB for wine here in MI.

 

[nageov3t]

currently waiting on the landlord to approve/sign off on his end of the lease to make it all official :/

this is my first time going through a broker and I'm not altogether happy about the experience, but it's next to impossible to find a good apartment without one, because most owners don't want to have to deal with all the minutia themselves.

real estate agent said it shouldn't be a problem getting the landlord to agree to our two terms (March 1st move-in date and changing the lease to allow for 1 cat), but nothing's official till he signs.