Ami Ben says the state’s smoking ban is forcing him to lay off three employees “who are like family.”
“My business went down at least 30 percent” since the ban went into effect July 1, said Ben, who owns Tarantula Billiards Cafe in downtown Denver. “This is total garbage!”
Ben said his business, at 14th and Champa streets, runs on a 10 percent profit margin and he has to cut staff and take other measures to survive.
“Nobody here ever complained about smoking,” Ben said. “It’s all the do-gooders.”
He isn’t alone in his plight.
Kyle Jewett, who co-owns Kyle’s Saloon & Eatery with her husband, said business is “scary slow” in the wake of the ban.
Jewett used the same figure – 30 percent – to describe the falloff in business at her saloon, 3989 Ulster St.
The couple have sunk a few hundred dollars into their patio – where smokers can legally light up – in hopes of hanging on to smoking regulars.
Some are using the patio, but others just stopped coming, Jewett said.
“It doesn’t look good,” she said. “If we don’t see some more business soon, we’re probably going to have to file for bankruptcy.”
The Coalition for Equal Rights, a group of bar owners that filed a lawsuit contesting the new law, will hold a news conference today at Billy’s Inn, 4403 Lowell Blvd.
James VonFeldt, the owner of Billy’s and president of the coalition, has also been hit with a sharp decline in business. He and other coalition members will share their smoking-ban experiences.
While the ban seems to be pounding bars, some restaurants are finding the smoke-free air refreshing.
“I get a lot of compliments that it now smells better in here,” said Matt Cohoon, manager of the Denver Diner.
Cohoon said business at the diner, which is open 24/7 at 740 W. Colfax Ave., is slightly off since the smoking ban.
“It could just be the summer doldrums,” he said. “I don’t think it has changed much.”
At Sam’s No. 3, at 15th and Curtis streets, it’s business as usual.
“So far, I don’t see a drastic change one way or the other,” said Kevin Ferguson, a night manager.
One of the biggest changes at Sam’s was incorporating smoking breaks for employees, including the service staff.
So far, Sam’s management is allowing up to two breaks per shift. Smoking employees go outside and light up at least 15 feet away from the front door to comply with the Colorado Clean Indoor Air Act.
At the bar in back of the grill at Sam’s, carpeting has been replaced and the walls have been repainted.
A regular patron lit up a cigarette at the bar recently, and staff told her to extinguish it.
“We told her that can’t happen again,” Ferguson said.
The smoker didn’t take it personally, he added: “She’s been back.”
Staff writer Kieran Nicholson can be reached at 303-820-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com.
