Pet Please #9: Nonsmoking Bars

Many of you live in cities where all bars and restaurants are nonsmoking. St. Louis is not one of those cities–not yet.

So a true pet please for me is finding a fun bar that’s nonsmoking. A place in which you can breathe. A place where you can walk out of smelling the same way you did when you walked in.

There aren’t many bars like that in St. Louis. They’re in little pockets, none of them near me. I go to bars in Clayton, the Central West End, and Wash Ave, and no place solely devoted to being a bar–where people go to do things they do at a bar–is nonsmoking.

The one place I found in the CWE that’s close is Bissinger’s. It’s a chocolate shop by day, a chocolate bar by night. Nice atmosphere, good drinks, but due to the layout and size, it’s never going to be a hopping bar at night.

I think most business owners in the area think that if they go nonsmoking, their clientele will leave. That may be true–you’ll lose some smokers, maybe a lot of smokers. But now is the time to gain a lot of nonsmokers who are looking for a great nonsmoking bar. Then, when the nonsmoking ordinances pass–which they will–you’ll have all those loyal customers that consider you a frontrunner in the smoke-free movement.

Also see: #7: The Forgotten Milkshake Phenomenon

5 thoughts on “Pet Please #9: Nonsmoking Bars”

  1. Jamey, Smoking Joe’s BBQ just opened up on 20th and Washington by me. It’s completely non-smoking, but the food is mediocre…

    Reply
  2. Once during a road trip to DC from Orlando in 2006, I stopped in at a restaurant in North Carolina and had this memorable moment:

    Hostess: Smoking or non?
    Me: ::stares blankly::
    Hostess: Non-smoking?
    Me: What?
    Hostess: Your smoking preference?
    Me: That still exists?
    Hostess: ::leads me to non-smoking section while wearing an amused scowl::

    Reply
  3. I stumbled upon your blog thru aol. I really like the contents which are well written and informative. I have bookmarked your site and will certainly visit again. Keep up the good work.

    Reply

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