TORONTO - Would you like a beer to go with your popcorn, or a glass of red wine with your Twizzlers?
  
Some moviegoers in Toronto now have those and other alcoholic options thanks to a one-year pilot project to see whether booze and movies can mix without any trouble.

The downtown Varsity cinema has had its special liquor licence since Friday. Customers can have a drink while watching a movie in one of four specially designated VIP theatres, where tickets carry a $5 surcharge.

Consumers had been asking for bar service in theatres for some time -- particularly in cinemas that have a licensed bar in the lobby -- and, so far, customer feedback has been positive, said Cineplex Entertainment spokeswoman Pat Marshall.

"It was an extension of a request from a number of our guests over the years who had said, `Why is it that we can buy alcohol in the lounge but we can't take it 10 more feet into the auditorium,"' Marshall said, while acknowledging the idea won't please everyone.

"We don't ever have the anticipation that 100 per cent of our clients want something. But we try to satisfy as many as possible."

Marshall said she's not worried about drunk patrons becoming a problem since there's a two-drink maximum, which is enforced by servers who deliver drinks right to a customer's seat.

Drinks are only served before a movie starts and not during the film, she added.

A former Varsity employee said the cinema's older, more mature crowd probably wouldn't get overly drunk and raucous at movies, although he predicted bar service could be problematic if it was available at other theatres popular with younger crowds.

"There's already enough rowdy people -- drinking would just make it 50 times worse," said 20-year-old Mike Prudente, who noted that when employees clean theatres they often find empty beer bottles that people snuck in.

"It did happen quite often. Maybe now allowing it will make that happen less -- or maybe not, because it's still cheaper at other places."

But some moviegoers were surprised by the reasonable drink prices, having expected a similar markup that sees a small bag of popcorn go for $4.99.

A domestic bottle of beer at the Varsity is $4.50 -- just a penny more than a large pop -- and a glass of house wine is $4.99. You can also buy a half litre of wine in the lounge for $16.20, while the whole bottle is $22.18.

Although Chris Armstrong, 35, walked into the theatre Monday with a coffee, he was impressed by the prices and said he likes the idea of having a drink or two with a movie.

"Considering in the rest of Toronto you'd find a beer for $4.50 or $5, it's a pretty good deal for this city."

Marshall said she didn't know why the markup is smaller on alcohol, although she noted that Cineplex is trying to implement more "street pricing."

Tim Hortons outlets that operate inside Cineplex theatres sell coffee and doughnuts at the same prices as their regular shops, she said.

The pilot project is also due to launch soon at the Oakville, Ont., SilverCity theatre, pending the liquor licence going through. It could be approved by the end of the week, Marshall said.
  
Ontario is the second province to experiment with the idea of drinks in cinemas. Alberta has licensed several movie theatres, although only a cinema at the West Edmonton Mall currently serves alcohol.

A spokeswoman for the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission said they've had no problems or complaints about drinking at the movies, and no licences have had to be revoked.