Drink Law Brings To-Go Cocktails to a Leesburg Mall

The Village at Leesburg — home to eateries like BurgerFi, Firebirds, and Plaza Azteca — is now letting visitors double-fist alcoholic drinks and shopping bags, aiming to bring a small taste of Bourbon Street or Las Vegas to the sleepy Northern Virginia suburb.

The shopping center (1602 Village Market Boulevard Southeast, Leesburg, Virginia) owned by Rappaport Management Company is the first Loudoun County outlet to tap into a new Alcoholic Beverage Control program, potentially bringing new meaning to “shop ‘til you drop” this holiday season.

Under a recently enacted law, customers can purchase a glass of wine, beer or cocktails from participating restaurants to carry with them in designated areas as they walk and shop through the development. The catch: They have to tote alcohol in disposable “Drink in the Good Life” cups — the slogan behind the new campaign — and they can’t bring in outside booze.

On-site restaurants allowed to sell to-go drinks include 5 Tara, BurgerFi, Eggspectation, Firebirds, Plaza Azteca, The Conche, and Travinia, as well as at the soon-to-open Vino Bistro and ChefScape. There are over 60 stores, restaurants, and entertainment venues at the center, according to its website. It’s unclear whether red wine will be discouraged at shops like White & Ivory jewelers.

The Virginia General Assembly approved a bill last year to allow “lifestyle” shopping developments that are at least 25 acres and have a minimum of 100,000 square feet of retail space to let its patrons to stumble around the site with alcohol in tow.