Outdoor seating may be synonymous with Chicago summers, but the city’s new smoking ban is clouding the rules for diners who like to light up at their alfresco tables.
Where you can smoke depends on the type of establishment, says Rosa Escareno, a spokeswoman with the city’s Department of Business Affairs & Licensing, which overseas monitoring and compliance of the smoking ban along with the Department of Health.
If you’re at a bar or tavern, a place that has a liquor license and derives more than 65 percent of its gross sales from alcohol, then yes, you can smoke anywhere, inside or outside.
If you’re at a restaurant that has a bar area and derives less than 65 percent of sales from alcohol, you cannot smoke within 15 feet of the door. But if the outdoor seating area extends past the 15-foot mark, Escareno says, “people can feel free to smoke” at those tables.
If a restaurant doesn’t allow smoking, you still have to move 15 feet away from the door to light up.
So you may want to grab a tape measure before you head out. Or, better yet, call and find out whether the establishment allows smoking.
It’s up to the restaurant/bar owners to be as clear as possible.
“It’s to their advantage to post signage so that their patrons are aware whether they allow smoking or not, so there is no misunderstanding,” Escareno said.