[Grant]

Gatto:

Funny, when I started reading your post, I was reminded of an evening last February when my brother-in-law and I went to see Ricky and the Giants at the Bad Moose. Great fun -- and arguably one of the best bar/cover bands I've ever had the pleasure of seeing (that guitarist is incredible). The one bummer of the evening was the smoke stench that permeated our clothing. And we both grew up in heavy smoking households -- although he never smoked (I did). It was the only bad part of an otherwise great night of food, drink and music.

These bans are a tough call. While I'm utterly opposed to the "Nanny Nation" mentality that wants to regulate everything we do -- from cradle to grave (yo, can we live free or die, or what?), and I understand the owner's quandary. I think that if an establishment wants to allow smoking, then the folks who patronize the place have to live with it or go somewhere else. Simple.