Restaurant Enacts Winter Smoking Ban

By Stephanie Tipple

Woodbridge, Va. — Smokers have been snuffed out at a Woodbridge restaurant, at least for winter.

The Electric Palm restaurant sits on the Occoquan River at the Prince William Marina, and this past Sunday began a no-smoking policy effective for the entire winter season.

Smoking has always been allowed in the restaurant’s downstairs Tiki Bar, which sits away from the dining area and is open and well ventilated during the spring and summer months, making it the ideal place to for patrons to smoke.

When winter came, the restaurant owners closed off the bar to the elements to keep in heat, but they continued to allow smoking at the bar. This led to a bevy of complaints from smokers and non-smokers alike, with the former claiming that they were restricted in their ability to smoke on the premises, and the latter worried about their dining atmosphere and health.

Roxanne Blum, an owning partner at the Electric Palm, worked to find a compromise. First they allowed patrons to continue to smoke cigarettes in the Tiki Bar area, restricting the use of cigars and pipes. This compromise didn’t last, and patrons continued to lodge complaints, going so far as to claim they would no longer patronize the restaurant if the issue wasn’t resolved. This led to Blum calling off inside smoking entirely.

“Smokers have the option to go outside, but non-smokers have no options,” Blum said.

The restaurant has read deck outback with a heater to keep smokers warm during the winter season.

When the spring and summer season arrive, the Tiki Bar will be reopened, and patrons will be allowed to smoke on the premises again.

On December 1, 2009, Virginia banned smoking in all restaurants across the commonwealth, but the law has some exceptions. Smoking is allowed in outside, well ventilated areas – like the Electric Palm’s Tiki Bar – or in restaurants that have a dedicated smoking room.