Cracker Barrel Informative - Now Non-Smoking!

Posted by Sparticus on 2012-01-19:

Great to hear! Hopefully within the next few years this will be the norm. I won't visit any establishment that permits smoking if I'm aware of it.

Posted by Wally86 on 2012-01-19:

Its illegal for any establishments in AZ to permit smoking. What patron wants to eat with a cloud of tobacco smoke around them.

Posted by Mario The Great on 2012-01-19:

Does anyone remember when smoking was the thing in EVERY restaurant? You would walk into Denny's and you would wonder if they were filming THE FOG? I've never smoked anything in my life, but those were the days. Lead Paint tasted like chicken, Asbestos had a slight tangy aroma and the ice cubes always had at least 10% dirt or a little bit of dysentery in them. Yummy...

Posted by MDSasquatch on 2012-01-19:

When are they gonna ban the gauntlet of smokers you have to pass through just to get in the front door?

Posted by Old Timer on 2012-01-19:

MDSasquatch, they have banned smoking in restaurants for years around here. Now, entire cities are banning it. One place I am happy to see crack downs is at the entrance to large office buildings etc. Around 10:00 am, noon and 3:00pm you need a gas mask just to enter some buildings.

Posted by trmn8r on 2012-01-19:

This is interesting. I never stopped to think about the fact that a restaurant may ban smoking company-wide.

I haven't checked on smoking in restaurants recently - Wikipedia is back up today - maybe I can find some stats. In the states I have been in recently, it isn't allowed by state law.

Posted by littleshorty on 2012-01-19:

In AZ you can't smoke within a certain distance from any entrance. I think its 30 feet but I might be wrong

Posted by Wally86 on 2012-01-19:

I smoke Cigarettes every now and then, but when I do I try to find a secluded area so i'm not bothering anyone with my smoke.

Posted by SteveWiginowski on 2012-01-19:

I loved it when bars banned smoking where I live. It was bad enough to endure the smoke to be around friends for the night, but to get home and reek of smoke was horrible.

As Mario mentioned, I remember when Denny's was full of smoke. Getting a table in non-smoking often meant just having less smoke at your table because there was very little to divide the two sections.

Posted by tnchuck100 on 2012-01-19:

I remember when smoking went unnoticed by the majority of the population. About the only place where smoking was prohibited was on elevators and during a plane takeoff/landing. Other than that there was no problem. Nobody complained. It drew no more attention than having a glass of wine.

I quit smoking 14 years ago. It has been my observation that the people that complain the loudest are ex-smokers. Personally, it doesn't bother me to be around a smoker. But I have no desire to take up the habit again.

How times have changed.

Posted by fast327 on 2012-01-19:

Since CB has improvd the atmosphere, perhaps now they could work on improving the food!

Posted by Starlord on 2012-01-19:

I remember hearing that Mesa planned on outlawing anyone smoking on any land adjacent to city property. This meant you could be cited for smoking in oyur own front yard, because it was adjacent to the city street. I don't know if they ever got that past the voters.

Posted by trmn8r on 2012-01-19:

You know, that is an excellent point fast327. I used to look for CB's, and then at some point (after getting sick twice) I began avoiding them.

Posted by CowboyFan on 2012-01-20:

I'm sad to hear this, although it is happening everywhere. To me, the restaurant should have the right to be smoking or non-smoking, and people can choose whether to go there or not. Why should the rights of non-smokers trump those of smokers, who choose to indulge. When it becomes profitable to be non-smoking, companies will do so.

TNchuck is right. I have never smoked and it makes no difference to me, but I certainly have seen a lot of former smokers who complained a lot about the smoke.

Posted by jktshff1 on 2012-01-20:

+100 cowboy

Posted by danny54 on 2012-01-20:

My county passed a smoking ban a few years ago. Several bars closed because people stopped going since they couldn't smoke there any longer. Sad, because they punished the business owner for something they had no control over.

Part of the smoking ban also states that people cannot smoke within 20 feet of doors or air-intake devices.

The state is considering a state-wide smoking ban, but it's still in discussion.

Posted by Mario The Great on 2012-01-20:

Longmont Colorado enacted a ban on smoking in ANY public places. There were several bars that closed because of this and the bowling alley had a heck of a time recuperating after this.

Posted by jktshff1 on 2012-01-20:

I have trouble how our gubment is labeling a privately owned business "public".