Missouri restaurants lose some tax breaks

​The Missouri Supreme Court laid down the law this week: There’s a difference between preparing food and manufacturing it.That difference means that a tax exemption that Missouri restaurateurs had been using to buy plates, tables, chairs and kitchen equipment is now a closed loophole.

Bloomberg Businessweek reported the story, which specifically deals with a chain restaurant group out of Dallas: Brinker Missouri Inc. — operators of the local Chili’s and Romano’s Macaroni Grill — which lost a $44,000 exemption claim in the decision.