Metro

Little-known NY law bans bottomless booze brunch

Some of New York’s best known brunch spots have illegally been getting New Yorkers sauced with bottomless drink specials that include an endless parade of booze.

A little-known New York State law prohibits “selling, serving, delivering or offering to patrons an unlimited number of drinks during any set period of time for a fixed price” according to the State Liquor Authority’s website.

But despite the law against unlimited drink specials, there is no shortage of NYC eateries aiming to draw patrons looking to tie one on before 3 p.m.

“We started getting a lot of calls from our member [restaurants] with questions about it, so it was abundantly clear to us that a lot of restaurants are not aware of the law,” said Robert Bookman, counsel to the NYC Hospitality Alliance.

The lack of restaurant owners’ knowledge of the law prompted the agency to send out an alert Monday to its member restaurants reminding them of the sometimes obscure law.

“I don’t think it’s a high enforcement priority,” he said. “The community boards don’t seem to be complaining about it and the customers definitely aren’t complaining about it.”

Still, there’s no shortage of restaurants willing to sling unlimited drinks to its thirsty clientele.

Latin hot spot Calle Ocho on the Upper West Side offers a $15 special that keeps customers swimming in unlimited sangria as long as they have a plate of food sitting in front of them, which is illegal under the SLA law.

“Please enjoy one glass of sangria at a time,” according to the restaurants’ website, which advertises the special.

“Don’t worry, there is plenty more where that came from!”

Servers will keep the 20-ounce glasses of booze coming — but within reason.

“Complimentary sangria is served during the course of your meal, not forever (unfortunately)!” the website states. “If that last bite of burrito has been sitting on your plate for three hours, you’re kind of toeing the line of ‘forever.’”

Calls to Calle Ocho were not returned.

Heath St. Clair, who owns an Australian burger joint in the East Village called The Sunburnt Cow, said he used to offer patrons all the mimosas and Fosters beer the could drink in 90 minutes — but that was before they were investigated by the SLA.

“We are very responsible with our customers,” St. Clair said. “We do not offer an unlimited brunch [anymore].”

The Aussie businessman said he imagines that most unlimited drink specials are actually “an illusion meant to make customers feel like they’re getting unlimited supply of booze, but is actually tightly controlled by servers.

“People could say or think about it however they want,” St. Clair said. “We only serve a person maybe four or five drinks. People get buzzed, they get happy, and they feel like they didn’t pay for it.”

“We’d go broke if we actually gave people unlimited drinks.”

The New York State Liquor Authority did not immediately return calls for comment.