TULSA, Okla. — A warning for business owners in Green Country to get a license if they serve alcohol.

It comes after the manager of a hookah lounge in Tulsa was arrested for operating a so called “Bottle Club.”

Officials told the Blue Hookah Bar near 71st and Mingo was serving alcohol without a license.

Officers from the Able Commission, which oversees law enforcement of alcohol, told FOX23 that the bar’s beer and liquor license expired six months ago.

The Able Commission said they sent an undercover officer into Blue Hookah Bar around 2:30 a.m. Saturday. The officer paid a fee to go in and saw the lounge operating their bottle club.

Assistant Director of the Able Commission Brent Fairchild told FOX23 that bottle clubs aren’t allowed.

“In the past, a bottle club was a business that did not sell alcohol. A bottle club actually sold memberships,” Fairchild explained. “You brought your bottle, you gave it to them, they charged you set up fees and poured your alcohol for you.”

He continued, “That part of the law has been stricken, and the entire state now is a mixed beverage state.”

The Able Commission said this is a misdemeanor, but they want to remind businesses that they need a license to sell alcohol.

“Get a license, that’s my warning,” Fairchild said. “I understand things are tough. Everybody’s trying to figure out a way to make money, but if you’re going to do it with alcohol, you have to get a proper license.”

He continued, “We want everybody to understand that pretty much every time you’re using alcohol for something, there’s a license that’s required and just to do your homework, contact us, you know. Our guys, they don’t go out and write tickets and do enforcement activities. We do educate and we’re all about helping people.”

The Able Commission said they have been in contact with the business before this but, and they said the business knew their license was expired. They also said the business had a clear understanding of what was expected and allowed by the Able Commission.

“They knew their license was expired,” Fairchild said. “We had contact with them previously. So it wasn’t a situation where they didn’t know.”

The commission also has a warning for drinkers — they said make sure you’re going to have the proper licensing.

“When you go out and about, you might want to check and make sure the places that you’re going have the proper licensing,” Fairchild said.

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