Before the ban: Rapture stubs out smoking, C&O cuts down
Rapture gets ahead of the smoke-free curve.PHOTO BY LISA PROVENCE
Even before the General Assembly banned smoking in restaurants and bars effective December 1, longtime smokers’ paradise Rapture decided to pull the plug on puffing.
“We had made the decision before we heard about the legislation,” says co-owner Mike Rodi.
Last August, the restaurant went smoke-free at lunch. “We were losing business,” says Rodi. “We’d have maybe one smoking table, and people waiting for non-smoking. And we had a lot of smoke drift.”
In January, smoking in the bar and Club R2 was limited to between 11pm and 2am, and on June 15, smoking was fini at Rapture.
The restaurant has a new chef, new items on the menu, and the owners are ready to freshen up the decor, paint and upholstery. It seemed pointless to do that in a smoky environment, says Rodi.
He points out (more)



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