Finance:Three-martini lunch
In the United States , the three-martini lunch or noontime three-martini is a leisurely, indulgent lunch enjoyed by businesspeople or lawyers.[1] It is named from the common belief that many people in the above-mentioned professions have enough leisure time and wherewithal to consume more than one martini during the work day. The 3-martini lunch became particularly identified in popular culture with Madison Avenue advertising executives in the 1960s and 1970s, who supposedly became more creative after such lunchtime libations.[2]
The term is sometimes used in political debates on tax deductibility of business meals in the United States .[3]
Decline
The three-martini lunch is no longer common practice for several reasons, including the implementation of "fitness for duty" programs by numerous companies, the decreased tolerance of alcohol use,[4] a general decrease in available leisure time for business executives[5] and an increase in the size of the martini.[6]
President John F. Kennedy called for a crackdown on such tax breaks in 1961, but nothing was done at the time.[7] Jimmy Carter condemned the practice during the 1976 presidential campaign.[6] Carter portrayed it as part of the unfairness in the nation's tax laws, claiming that the working class was subsidizing the "$50 martini lunch".[8] A "rich businessman" could write off this type of lunch as a business expense, thereby reducing the cost by his effective tax rate. His opponent, Gerald Ford, in a 1978 speech to the National Restaurant Association, responded with: "The three-martini lunch is the epitome of American efficiency. Where else can you get an earful, a bellyful and a snootful at the same time?"[6][9][10]
Recent times
It was once popular in Washington, D.C., but has declined since the early 1990s.[11] The practice has also been affected by changing views on alcohol consumption, while others have chosen to go with new drinks like the vodka martini and Cosmopolitan.[12] The cost of some drinks has increased three times faster than the inflation rate.[13]
The entertainment deduction, which includes meals, was reduced to 80 percent in 1987[14] and to 50 percent in 1994.[15]
Comedian George Carlin once commented that the crackdown on the three-martini lunch "shouldn't affect the working man's two-joint coffee break".[16]
See also
- List of cocktails
References
- ↑ "Lunch with a twist: one writer asks what became of the noontime three-martini extravaganza-and discovers what happens when you try it.". 2010-06-01. https://www.lamag.com/longform/lunch-lunch-with-a-twist1/.
- ↑ Edwards, Jim (August 2, 2010). "Will a 3-Martini Lunch Make You More Creative at Work?". CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/will-a-3-martini-lunch-make-you-more-creative-at-work/.
- ↑ ""Three-martini lunch" tax break draws outrage. It also may fall short for restaurants." (in en-US). https://www.cbsnews.com/news/three-martini-lunch-stimulus-bill-tax-break-restaurant-aid/.
- ↑ Sorich, Sonya (October 26, 2006). "Business drinkers walk fine line". Columbus Ledger-Enquirer. http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/mld/ledgerenquirer/15848970.htm. Internet Archive; URL last accessed June 4, 2010).
- ↑ Drummond, Mike (March 14, 2005). "What Ever Happened to the 3 Martini Lunch?". The Charlotte Observer. http://www.hotel-online.com/News/PR2005_1st/Mar05_MartiniLunch.html.
- ↑ Jump up to: 6.0 6.1 6.2 Kuntzman, Gersh, "Martinis for Victory!", Newsweek, October 22, 2006 (URL last accessed March 13, 2008).
- ↑ Jonathan Gruber (December 21, 2004). Public Finance and Public Policy. Macmillan. p. 500.
- ↑ Stratton, Jeremy (January 2, 2006). "The decline of the three-martini lunch". Downtown Journal (Minneapolis-St. Paul). http://www.journalmpls.com/node/3918.
- ↑ Gray, W. Blake (December 2, 2004). "Trends change but the martini is always cool". San Francisco Chronicle. http://www.sfgate.com/wine/article/Martini-holiday-Trends-change-but-the-martini-2667551.php.
- ↑ Andrew F. Smith (May 1, 2007). The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink. Oxford University Press. p. 367.
- ↑ "The Three-Martini Lunch: It Used to Happen". 2002-04-02. https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-342817.html.(Subscription content?)
- ↑ "A new twist on the three-martini lunch: Times have changed and so have attitudes toward drinking and then going back to work.". 2006-07-16. https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-148243451.html.(Subscription content?)
- ↑ "Nowadays, a three martini lunch puts you in the poor house.(News)". 2005-12-01. https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-139313440.html.(Subscription content?)
- ↑ "CHANGES IN TAX LAWS DILUTE THE THREE-MARTINI LUNCH". 1988-07-04. https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1N1-1085380DC103D675.html.[|permanent dead link|dead link}}](Subscription content?)
- ↑ Alison Mitchell (24 July 1999). "House Puts 'Three-Martini Lunch' Tax Break Back on the Table". The New York Times. http://partners.nytimes.com/library/politics/072499tax-congress.html.
- ↑ Donnelly, Laura (January 24, 2012). "Seasons by the Sea: South Fork Power Lunch". The East Hampton Star. http://easthamptonstar.com/Food/2012124/Seasons-Sea-South-Fork-Power-Lunch.
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