Can you eat a plate of Cuban food while driving? How about pizza? What Florida law says

Miami Herald Staff
·3 min read
15

Can you eat and drive in Florida? And does it matter what you’re eating?

Are fries and a burger OK? What about a platter of ropa vieja grabbed through a drive-through window? Can you steer with one hand and use a fork with the other?

With more and more restaurants offering drive-through, including a South Florida Cuban food chain and a Broward pizza shop, drivers should know Florida law.

Here are details:

Is it legal to eat while driving in Florida?

Cynthia Bowles serves drive-thru customers outside the Chick-fil-A she runs in Hialeah.
Cynthia Bowles serves drive-thru customers outside the Chick-fil-A she runs in Hialeah.

The law: Despite the myth, there are no Eating While Driving laws in the state. But that doesn’t mean you can’t get in trouble for doing so. More on that in a bit.

The menu: Does your food have to be hand-held while driving, or can you use utensils? The law doesn’t have a preference on what you eat or how you eat it — whether it’s a McRib sandwich from McDonald’s; a Crunchwrap Supreme from Taco Bell; an entire pizza from Joe’s Old School drive-thru; or boliche, black beans and a mound of maduros from Las Vegas Cuban Restaurant (which has a drive-through window, by the way, right off I-95 in Hollywood.) Eating in the car is so powerful that McDonald’s once ran a TV commercial featuring a man who couldn’t wait to get home and polished off the whole container while driving. Regardless of main course and a side, your drink has to be non-alcoholic because there are strict laws against drinking alcohol while behind the wheel. Matter of fact, you can’t even have an open bottle of beer in the car, even if you are not drinking it while driving.

MORE: Can passengers drink booze in a car? What about storing a bottle?

Can you be cited for eating while driving?

In 1999, a drive-through customer in Hialeah.
In 1999, a drive-through customer in Hialeah.

Distracted driving laws: The Florida Department of Transportation says that “activities such as eating, talking to passengers, reading, adjusting the radio or climate controls, dealing with children, and being fatigued or drowsy can be equally as distracting” as texting on a cellphone. However, these activities aren’t illegal. But that doesn’t mean that they can’t land you in serious trouble.

What a lawyer says about eating while driving: “Multitasking might be a valued skill in today’s fast-paced society. But one place where it could be dangerous is on the road. Eating while driving is a habit many drivers develop without realizing the potential risk it brings,” Florida lawyer Angela Zervos writes in a blog.

What is the citation if eating while driving causes an issue on the road?

In 2006, Viola Monmany Davie picks up her coffee drink at a 24-hour drive-thru window at Starbucks in Southwest Ranches.
In 2006, Viola Monmany Davie picks up her coffee drink at a 24-hour drive-thru window at Starbucks in Southwest Ranches.

Penalties: If trying to get the perfect bite of a burrito without squirting sour cream all over your pants causes you to swerve, speed or otherwise drive dangerously, you can be cited for a moving violation under a careless driving statute. That could cost you up to $500 in fines. If your eating causes a crash, you could be charged with reckless driving. According to Florida law, reckless driving occurs when a driver operates a vehicle with “willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property.” If convicted, you could face up to 90 days in prison or a $500 fine for a first offense, and up to six months or a $1,000 fine for a subsequent offense. Now, that’s some indigestion right there.