Did a supermarket's general customer parking make a coffee bar's takeout-food sales taxable as food consumed at retailer-provided facilities?

Plain-English summary

A coffee-bar operator at a large supermarket asked whether the recent amendment of section 6359 made its food sold to go taxable.

The letter understood the available parking to serve people shopping at the supermarket generally. Because the parking was not provided primarily for customers to consume food bought at the coffee bar, tax did not apply to the takeout-food sales on that assumption.

The answer was conditional: if the parking facilities were actually provided primarily for patrons to eat the purchased food, the stated reasoning would not resolve the result.

Common questions

Did any nearby parking make takeout food taxable?

No. The source focused on why the facilities were provided, not merely their proximity.

What fact controlled the answer?

The parking was for supermarket shoppers generally rather than primarily for consumption by the coffee bar's patrons.

Citations and references

• California Revenue and Taxation Code section 6359 (as cited after amendment)
• Sales and use tax Ruling 53(b) (enclosed and cited)

Source

• Annotated Legal Opinions collection: https://cdtfa.ca.gov/taxes-and-fees/annotations-menu.htm
• Annotation page: https://cdtfa.ca.gov/lawguides/vol2/suta/550-0000-all.html
• Original supporting opinion: https://cdtfa.ca.gov/lawguides/annotations/550-0620.pdf

Original ruling text

550.0620

STATE OF CALIFORNIA

STATE BOARD OF EQUALIZATION

October 25, 1963

Mr. L--- H. Y--Y---’s Coffee Bar
P.O. Box XXX
--- --- ---, California

-- - XXXXXX

Dear Mr. Y---:
This is in reply to your letter of October 15 regarding the recent amendment to section 6359 of the Revenue and Taxation Code. You question its application to the sale of food “to go” by your establishment at a large supermarket. We understand that the available parking facilities are for the general use of persons shopping at the market. Thus, it would appear that the facilities are not provided primarily for the use of patrons in consuming the food purchased at your place of business. If this is so, the tax will not apply to your sale of food “to go.” The change in the law is explained in part (b) of ruling 53, copy enclosed. Very truly yours,

E. H. Stetson
Tax Counsel

By _______
Patricia McKinney

PM:md
Enclosure