Dave Milligan said he couldn't imagine his restaurant without some beer on the menu.
For the Crunchy's owner, a liquor license is just as integral to business as his burger-yielding kitchen.
"Liquor makes up almost half of our revenue," Milligan said.
Milligan owns one of the 31 liquor licenses distributed to East Lansing by the Michigan Liquor Control Commission.
The commission hands out licenses to municipalities in relation to population size.
Milligan has owned the restaurant, located at 254 W. Grand River Ave., for the last nine years of its 21-year existence. He purchased the liquor license from the previous owner, an action that had to be approved by the commission and East Lansing.
For Milligan, the greatest threat to his business lies in the thirsty tongues of patrons under 21, a constant concern, he said. The owner said he has taken steps to combat the problem.
"We were the first one to get all of our waitstaff (Techniques for Alcohol Management) certified," Milligan said, referring to the Michigan training program that teaches waitstaff how to deal with liquor. "Anything other than a Michigan driver's license has two people check it, the server and the bartender."
East Lansing's 31 licenses are all in a variety of places, said City Clerk Sharon Reid. Twenty-five of the licenses are in use.
Three have been sold and transferred out of the city to other Ingham County establishments. One license originally held by Jacobson's - which closed its Grand River Avenue store in 2000 - is in escrow. Another is being set aside for the Eagle Eye Golf Club at Hawk Hollow golf course on Chandler Road.
Finally, one still is available in the city, but officials have vowed to hold it for a large development.
Procuring a liquor license in Michigan is a lengthy and often complex task, involving many local and state approvals, said Linda Wood, a member of the licensing staff at the Liquor Control Commission.
A potential licensee either can apply for a license designated to their municipality or transfer in a license previously purchased from another establishment.
In both cases, approval must be granted by the local municipality, local police and a state commission investigation.
"The investigators look at the person's background, their tax records, where they are getting their money and the actual nature of the business itself," Wood said. "If they've had drunken driving offenses, the LCC takes that into account."
Robert Potvin is a member of East Lansing's Downtown Development Authority, one of the many groups that offers recommendations for approval or denial on new liquor licenses in the city.
In East Lansing, an applicant must first be granted a special-use permit. The process involves first receiving a recommendation by the city's Planning Commission and the Downtown Development Authority and then being approved by the city council.
"We make a recommendation that is presented to us based on the information we're given and the testimony of the applicant," Potvin said.
Jaewook Lee, owner of Omi, 210 M.A.C. Ave., was granted a special use permit in 2003 but hasn't been able to buy a license to transfer into East Lansing.
"We are trying to find one, but it's difficult here," Lee said. "People know we don't have a liquor license, so they go to other restaurants."
