Lemme throw this in there.

Bars and Cafe's, like Salvadors make a significant amount of their profit from selling alcohol. It's one of the few things people are willing to buy at a 1,000% or more markup and requires a relatively minimal effort to prepare and serve.

The relationship between smoking and alcohol has long been documented. Actually, casual and heavy smokers are 16 times more likely to drink daily and go on binges, especially college aged kids.

It has also been shown that people tend to drink more when they smoke and vice versa.

What I'm saying is that if I owned a bar around both a university and a stomping ground for ex-pat lushes, I wouldn't care about the families and christians that came in for a milkshake and a burrito which I turn a 20-30% profit on, but would be encouraging heavy smoking, and in turn heavy heavy all day suicidal drinking.

Smoking=More Drinking=More Dollar Bills

It's a fact. why you gonna do something stupid and slow down the gravy train?

As for Salvadors, come on non-smokers, you already got the downstairs. Take 'er easy on the crusade.

Dinkus - - would like to know your sources.
+ 1,000% or more markup. Where is this documented?
+ ...smokers are 16 times more likely to drink daily... Where is this documented?
+...been shown that people tend to drink more when they smoke and vice versa. Where is this documented?

Be interesting if you can prove your statements.

JJ, pretty sure that post was a joke.

I would smoke way more during a heavy bit of drinking with friends than I would otherwise. Whether it's a result of the alcohol or simply because of a lack of anything better to do when you're sitting on a bar stool escapes me. You can only attempt so many crossword puzzles until it becomes boring or mentally taxing once you've had enough to drink.

But I do know from personal experience very few smokers who didn't drink. It's like, "oh dude, I have these cancer sticks but I'm not drinking. I cherish my liver too much." Doesn't sound very plausible, right? I do know quite a few drinkers who don't smoke. Kind of weird now that I think about it...I've met very few non-smokers at a bar having a drink complaining about the smoke. It's usually the people writing their memoirs in public on their notebooks while sipping cappuccinos who take offense to it.

I'm pretty sure attempting to document this would be a bit silly as it's fairly common knowledge, at least in the countries I've been to. Unless someone has had a different experience?