Unfortunately restaurants don't advertise whether they allow smoking or not. If they did and if the economics allowed both to exist, I would probably be fine with that and only visit the non-smoking restaurants. However, you typically don't know whether a restaurant allows smoking until you go there and most do.
I suspect it's sort of like grocery stores with alcohol. If you aren't willing to sell alcohol, you won't have enough profit to stay in business. Therefore once one store in your area starts, all of the grocery stores have to carry it to compete.
I've been in many restaurants that seemed clean and was halfway through a meal only to have a chain smoker light up behind me and ruin the experience. I've turned around and walked out of many restaurants without ever sitting down because their was too much smoke in the air.
Our favorite pizza place allows smoking. It doesn't stop us from going there. But we have often changed our minds about eating in and switched to carry out because of the smoke. Once in the middle of the meal.
I don't really know why they don't compete more on these lines, but I suspect the market forces don't allow it.
They sure do! The remaining three in my area that still accomodate smokers have a sign posted right outside their doors: "This is a smoking establishment."
If smoking bothers you, I would suggest you use the yellow pages and telephone to find a restaurant that will be to your liking.
Sure they do. Just about everywhere I've been there have existed restaurants with smoking and non-smoking sections, and there have been smoke-free restaurants. Usually there are a few restaurants which allow smoking everywhere, and many bars fall into this category.
There's a general economic principle which says that a group which represents a certain percentage of potential profit in some field (e.g. sit-down restaurants) will typically be served by at least that percentage of businesses in that field. When free markets are allowed to function, just about everyone can get served (in a good way). This is very different from the way government works, where some people get served (in the way a waiter does a patron) and others get "served" (in the way a bull does a cow).
WTF????
You think we should expand the role/power of the government because you are to lazy to make a phone call???
So, what I understand here is;
1) There are not enough antismoking zealots to support a nonsmoking restaurant.
2) Most people don't really care if a restaurant allows smoking
3) The antismokers WILL use the power of junk science AND government to enforce their unreasonable demands on everyone else.