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More Eateries Snuff Out Smoking: At Least 300 of Wichita's 1,700 Restaurants Are Smoke-Free, and Restaurateurs Say the Number is Growing.

Posted on: Sunday, 1 January 2006, 15:00 CST

By Joe Stumpe, The Wichita Eagle, Kan., The Wichita Eagle, Kan.

Jan. 1--When Chester's Chophouse was going up in the Waterfront development last spring, its owners spent about $30,000 to install smoke-eating filters.

The equipment was designed to keep clouds of cigarette and cigar smoke from migrating from the bar, where smoking would be allowed, into the nonsmoking dining rooms.

But just before opening the restaurant at 13th and Webb, the owners decided the entire interior of the upscale restaurant would be smoke-free.

"And now it's just up there recirculating fresher air," co-owner Bobby Lane said of the equipment.

The story illustrates what many restaurateurs say is a trend in Wichita for restaurants to voluntarily prohibit or severely limit smoking.

Restaurateurs and anti-tobacco activists say the number of establishments that have done so -- from chains such as P.F. Chang's and Red Robin to local eateries such as Bella Luna and Adrian's -- has risen significantly in five years and shows no sign of slowing down.

Nobody has exact numbers, but a Web site maintained by Tobacco-Free Wichita (tobaccofreewichita.org) lists more than 300 restaurants that ban smoking. There are about 1,700 restaurants in Wichita. The list doesn't include many restaurants such as Chester's that allow smoking only in outdoor areas.

"The number of smoke-free restaurants is increasing," said Dennis Carpenter, executive director of the Kansas Restaurant and Hospitality Association.

Most fast-food and family-oriented restaurant chains have long prohibited smoking. The biggest difference in the past couple of years is the number of casual-dining restaurants that have followed suit.

Many of those restaurants serve alcohol. For years, the prevailing theory in the industry was that you couldn't have one without the other. Sometimes those restaurants compromised by allowing smoking only in their bars.

But more and more Wichita restaurateurs seem willing to risk it. They're convinced a majority of customers prefer a nonsmoking atmosphere, although wary that a minority might take offense.

Smoke-free, one by one

Jim Stevens, who owns several Applebee's in the area, decided to prohibit smoking in his newest locations, New Market Square and Derby. Stevens said his restaurants' experience in other areas convinced him that the move made sense.

"We didn't have any pushback at all," he said, after Salina, where he owns an Applebee's, banned most smoking in restaurants in 2003. "In fact, sales increased."

Stevens also noticed something in Applebee's locations where smoking is still allowed:

"On a Friday or Saturday night, the nonsmoking section is on long wait, and there are tables available in the smoking section," he said.

It's not only customers' concerns that cause some restaurants to go smoke-free. Lane of Chester's said keeping his employees from exposure to secondhand smoke, maintaining the appearance of the restaurant and protecting his own taste buds were all factors.

"It changed my palate completely when I went from smoking to nonsmoking," said Lane, a former smoker.

Nevertheless, he emphasized that he's "not trying to dictate to anybody that they should quit," and pointed out that the restaurant sells cigars that can be smoked on its covered patio.

Restaurateurs say a ban wouldn't be popular everywhere. Wayne King prohibits smoking in two of his restaurants -- Jimmie's Diner and the Kings -X -- but allows it in Toc's Coffeehouse, a fixture at the corner of George Washington and Harry.

"Different clientele, you know," he said of Toc's. "So many of them do smoke."

It might be an even tougher sell in restaurants that sell more alcohol than food.

"No way," said the owner of one such establishment when asked if he would voluntarily ban smoking. He did not want to be identified.

Next step: state ban?

Members of Tobacco-Free Wichita are encouraged by the number of restaurants going smoke-free. But they want the city or state to pass a ban that would apply to all restaurants, something that the cities of Bel Aire, Lawrence and Salina have done in recent years.

Pat MacDonald, former chairwoman of Tobacco-Free Wichita, said Mayor Carlos Mayans and his predecessor, Bob Knight, both rebuffed the organization's efforts, saying a smoking ban isn't something the city should impose on private businesses.

"I certainly think, the next time people run for election, that (nonsmoking issue) should be part of the process," MacDonald said.

The Kansas Restaurant and Hospitality Association believes any restrictions should be voluntary, Carpenter said, adding that it's "a pretty highly sensitive issue with our members."

But some members say they'd welcome a law banning smoking in all Wichita restaurants.

"I just wish the city councilmen and the Kansas legislators would take the lead on this program and do like a lot of states and cities have gone to and make that mandatory for all restaurants," Stevens said. "I think it's a cleaner environment to be in."

Reach Joe Stumpe at 269-6752 or jstumpe@wichitaeagle.com [mailto:jstumpe@wichitaeagle.com].

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Wichita Eagle, Kan.

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Source: The Wichita Eagle (Wichita, Kan.)

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