Anti-Smoking Laws Make It Hard for Supper Clubs to Stay in Business

The tradition of gaming and gambling and supper clubs in Las Vegas has stretched back for many years, as in the 80s, new laws were passed that allowed clubs to serve liquor as long as it didn’t take in any less than 51% of their income in food sales, meaning that the driving force of the supper club industry was always going to be food and food sales.  But with recent laws forbidding smoking in culinary establishments, supper clubs have lost a tremendous amount of business and cannot compete with other establishments.  Unlike a true tavern, they cannot close their kitchen and offer take-out menus as many establishments have begun doing.  And unlike many taverns and Las Vegas attractions they cannot erect separate bar areas that allow smoking.  The laws that govern supper clubs and control the way that they are regulated mean that many of the options that are available for other institutions and designations of businesses simply are not feasible for the supper clubs, where food has to be such a large portion of their income.  This emphasis on providing food is the very downfall of the supper clubs in relation to the new anti-smoking laws.  By serving food and being a part of the food service industry, they make themselves subject to the anti-smoking laws that pertain to any establishment that serves food.  In the case of alcohol or other services such as gambling and gaming, the regulation does not apply.  But since supper clubs are dependent on the 51% of overall sales that are food related, they have no choice but to comply with the anti-smoking regulations.

While it is easy to provide a smoking area outside, in the Las Vegas heat it is very uncomfortable to spend your time outdoors simply to smoke a cigarette.  The tradition of gaming and gambling has always allowed for a smoking indoors in the casinos and restaurants that comprise the Las Vegas backdrop.  But with the changes in smoking law, it is apparent that many businesses simply will not survive, as many supper clubs have begun to lay off workers and are seeing a severe decline in income.  Waitresses report 40% less tips as well as a lack of business overall.  With this reduced influx of new business and repeat business, it is a difficult matter indeed to increase the revenue of the food-based industry to compete with other types of businesses, such as pubs and taverns who face no such restrictions from anti-smoking law.

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