Prohibiting smoking in a North Carolina restaurant used to be one of the hardest decisions an owner could make. But that’s no longer the case after the state took the choice out of business owners’ hands when legislators decided last spring to stop allowing smoking in restaurants and bars. The ban will go into effect Saturday. Owners of restaurants that have already banned smoking say that owners of places that had still been letting ... Jump to full article >>

When, more than a decade ago now, smoking bans began to take effect around the world, researchers and public health officials feverishly collected data demonstrating the health benefits: lower levels of respiratory illness were reported among bar workers from Dublin to San Francisco after indoor smoking bans took effect, saliva tests revealed lower levels of nicotine concentration in hotel and restaurant workers once smokers were chucked outside ... Jump to full article >>

NEWPORT NEWS – That was one costly nicotine hit. At about 11 p.m Monday, Jarry K. Ratliff, 27, took a break from his job at the McDonald’s on Jefferson Avenue in Denbigh to light up a cigarette inside the restaurant. Unfortunately for him, that happened to be when Newport News police officer Matthew Andreoli was going through the restaurant’s drive-through. Andreoli also knew about a new statewide ban on smoking in restaurants ... Jump to full article >>

“I LOVE matches.” That’s how Dona Savitsky, a former smoker, accounted for the dainty tray of insignia matchboxes at the entrance to Flora, the restaurant she and a partner opened in Oakland, Calif., two years ago. The objects of her specific adoration are blue-and-silver boxes, shaped like a lipstick (also known in the trade as an ascot), each of which contains 22 blue-tipped wooden strikes. Bearing Flora’s Art Deco logo, the matchboxes ... Jump to full article >>

I recently returned from an eight-day trip to the twin cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minn., where smoking in public places is not allowed. It was a delight to enter a restaurant or bar and not be saturated in secondhand smoke. The fact that every venue we entered was filled to capacity demonstrates that the nonsmoking law didn’t hamper any customers from enjoying these places. We made a side trip to Wisconsin but returned to Minnesot ... Jump to full article >>

PHOENIX – A pair of studies released this week show indoor smoking bans in public buildings lead to a 17-percent decrease in heart attack rates during the first year. After three years, one study showed smoking bans reduced heart attacks by up to 36 percent. Arizona’s own voter-approved smoking ban has been in effect just over two years. Harmony Duport, acting program manager for Smoke-Free Arizona, says compliance today is excellent ... Jump to full article >>

When Illinois barred smoking in almost all public places in January 2008, most bars and restaurants saw sales slump. Some smokers flocked west to Missouri taverns, where smoking is still allowed. “It cost us $111,000 in alcohol sales,” said Jerry Cooke, one of the owners of the Pontoon Beach bar Mac and Mick’s, where sales took at hit following the new rule. “The year before we came close to almost $1 million in alcohol ... Jump to full article >>

A year after it was implemented, the statewide smoking ban is receiving mixed reviews from bar and restaurant owners. At Theo’s Bar & Grille in Lower Allen Township, owner Ted Kalathas said he lost some of his regular bar clientele. “My bar crowd was tremendous. At the same time, what can I do? The people out for happy hour who want to light a cigarette are going to go somewhere else,” he said. On the flip side, food sales ... Jump to full article >>

George Potamousis said he was sorry to close his Four Seasons Family Dining Restaurant, 1 Sagamore Parkway N. But he said he didn’t have a choice. “There wasn’t enough business any more,” Potamousis said Tuesday. “I just want to thank my customers. I also had good help there. It just wasn’t enough.” The restaurant, which sat at the busy intersection of Indiana 26 East and Sagamore Parkway, closed July 22 ... Jump to full article >>