A Tale Of Smith County: The Unicard And A Private Club With Memberships Available

The majority of people, including myself, who moved to Tyler, Texas, or into Smith County Texas more than a decade ago, were most likely unaware that you could not go into a restaurant during happy hour or anytime and order a beer or a cocktail without being a 'member' of the restaurant or club.

Nor could you go to a local liquor store and purchase beer, wine, or liquor for off-premise consumption.  You had to drive across county lines to make those purchases.

Up until 2012, portions of Smith County were dry, including the city of Tyler, until voters approved a measure to make the sale of beer and wine a legal transaction.

There have been lots of changes since I moved to East Texas in 1997. When I was new to town and much younger we would hit up Chili's, TGI Fridays, On The Border or Sharkey's, Rick's, or Clicks on the weekend to have a beer or mixed drink, but in order to drink you had to be a 'member' of the restaurant or club or carry a Unicard! Man have times changed and for the better.

No more club memberships or Unicards

Being a member was just a way to get around county and state laws in order for residents to purchase an adult beverage legally.

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Texas has some rather unusual laws when it comes to purchasing alcohol and liquor. Some of the laws have become relaxed over the years, but there are some laws that no one can get around and they're still on the books.

While Texas alcohol laws are among some of the strictest in the country, they can also be a bit confusing. Why is it some counties can sell alcohol at restaurants and bars until 2 a.m. when other counties must stop selling at 1 a.m.?  I'll never know or understand!

If that's not mind-blowing enough, check out these 12 weird laws that are enforceable when it comes to selling alcohol in Texas.