How will the smoking ban affect the "bar scene?" (Minneapolis: house, buy)

[MidniteBreeze]

Golfgal and others: well, for the business owners' sake, I do hope you're right that more non-smokers will go out to make up for the number of smokers who will probably opt to stay home (especially in the winter.) I just think it will be a hard transition for some businesses and their employees (especially those who depend on tips) and I'm sure some places just won't be able to hang on, which is unfortunate.

Anutie Bob, yes I'm sure the casinos will definitely benefit being they will be the only places left in the state where smokers can still smoke indoors.

On the flip side, I bet this will absolutely kill some bars in Duluth (I'm especially thinking of the working class bars out in west end/west Duluth) where people can just hop over the bridge to Superior to get their "fix." I'm guessing there will probably be more DWI's as well.

[Auntie Bob]

Originally Posted by MidniteBreeze

On the flip side, I bet this will absolutely kill some bars in Duluth (I'm especially thinking of the working class bars out in west end/west Duluth) where people can just hop over the bridge to Superior to get their "fix." I'm guessing there will probably be more DWI's as well.

Definitely, for a while. Some legislators from WI are already saying a statewide ban is in the offing there too though.
I can't imagine what will happen to Superior if that actually happens.

[keepthefaith]

PP got it right. In California, the bar/restaurants owners were worried that it would decrease sales. Exactly the opposite happened. The owners made more money than ever. There are fewer non-smokers than smokers in the world.

[MidniteBreeze]

Originally Posted by Auntie Bob

I can't imagine what will happen to Superior if that actually happens.

Yeah, no kidding! A world where no one is drinking/smoking in Superior would be a strange one indeed.

[moving123456]

Originally Posted by keepthefaith

PP got it right. In California, the bar/restaurants owners were worried that it would decrease sales. Exactly the opposite happened. The owners made more money than ever. There are fewer non-smokers than smokers in the world.

I think you have the last part backwards.

[lundholmster]

Stockholm, Sweden has had a smoking ban for a couple of years. No decline in bar patrons as far as I know. People go outside and smoke, or smoke in specially airconditioned rooms.

Smoking ban pros:
Your clothes/hair doesn't stink the next day

Cons:
You can smell all the other smells in the bar. People fart and smell like sweat.

[kuan]

Successful businesses constantly reinvent themselves. Basic principles never change. As a bar owner I'd think about trying to capture a tiny portion of the 90% of people who don't smoke.

I know this guy whose business morphed from a bookstore to a coffeehouse to an internet cafe to a bar to a restaurant.

[Castaway]

Originally Posted by Auntie Bob

Our city enacted the smoking ban earlier than the State laws and what it's looking like here, the "working man's" bars are going to have a hard way to go and probably end up closing.
Most are operating on a shoestring to begin with and putting the needed 'patios' etc in place is cost prohibitive.
Most of these aren't the kind of bars that are going to see an increase in 'new' clientele, just because there won't be smokers there now.
Remodeling to make them into something other than a basic drinking man's bar I'm sure is cost prohibitive also.

My guess is, in the areas that have casinos, their business will skyrocket.
Rumor has it that Black Bear Casino already had their plans drawn up for their new buildings when the state wide smoking ban was announced. They redrew the plans to make the bar areas 3 times bigger.

The working man's bar is the true loss. The bar that I manage is mostly a blue collar bar although we do get some of the local scientists. All the trades come after work. Now, no one.

Why are people here mentioning how nice it is to eat in a no smoke environment? Most restaurants are non-smoking. We are talking about bars here not restaurants.

The Indian Casinos are the only places besides private clubs that you can smoke in. Business is definitely picking up for them. Indian run places have more freedoms than I do an American citizen. America has come full circle.

It is sad that the corner bar will not fair this ban. This are the places where people go to talk, not dance and are definitely not pick up places. These are the places I prefer to go. Small, comes as you-are-type bars. No pretenses here, just friends and great conversations.

[Auntie Bob]

One of the things I really worry about happening with this is...furthering the divide between whites and Native Americans.
There's already a lot of resentment on the part of some white business owners in what they feel is favoritism toward the Indians when it comes to the casinos.
They already feel the casinos are cutting into their customer base. Now, if all the smokers end up going to the casino bars and restaurants and the establishments that lose those customers end up going out of business, I think there's a distinct possibility of the racial tensions mounting.

[Auntie Bob]

Originally Posted by Castaway

The working man's bar is the true loss. The bar that I manage is mostly a blue collar bar although we do get some of the local scientists. All the trades come after work. Now, no one.

Why are people here mentioning how nice it is to eat in a no smoke environment? Most restaurants are non-smoking. We are talking about bars here not restaurants.

The Indian Casinos are the only places besides private clubs that you can smoke in. Business is definitely picking up for them. Indian run places have more freedoms than I do an American citizen. America has come full circle.

It is sad that the corner bar will not fair this ban. This are the places where people go to talk, not dance and are definitely not pick up places. These are the places I prefer to go. Small, comes as you-are-type bars. No pretenses here, just friends and great conversations.

I believe the new MN state ban is also covering private clubs. It's funny you should mention the casinos. Your post wasn't here when I started typing mine.
I'm really worried about the problems this stupid law might cause in that particular area.

I don't think people realize that, especially in small towns, there's certain bars that have a distinct clientele. Just because smoking is no longer allowed, a lot of non-smokers aren't going to start flocking down to Joe's corner bar were all the guys from the mill normally hung out after work.
And we have several little divy bars that are basically just for the hard core drinkers, who are normally heavy smokers too. People do go there to socialize but, it's a certain type of people that are always going to be the only people that go there. These bars are the ones that are least likely to be able to afford to put the needed patios, etc in or to 'reinvent' themselves.