Irish smokers braced to go 'al fresco' as ban looms

With its rain and notoriously changeable weather, Ireland seems an unlikely place to spawn an outdoor cafe culture in the mould of Spain, Italy or Greece.

But with a nationwide ban on indoor smoking due to come into force mext week, Irish smokers are donning their raincoats and bracing themselves to go "al fresco".

From Monday, it will be illegal to smoke in all Irish workplaces, including bars, restaurants and the country's famously hospitable pubs.

In response, publicans and cafe owners are setting up tables outside their premises to allow their smoking customers to enjoy a cigarette and a pint without breaking the law.

When Michael Durkan, co-proprietor of The Old Mill pub in Julianstown, County Meath, was looking for an awning to erect at the back of his pub six months ago, he found nothing suitable anywhere in Ireland.

He had to go to Belgium to buy his "patiola", a sturdy awning with a remote-controlled retractable canopy of a type often seen outside pavement cafes in continental Europe.

The patiola has proved so popular with fellow publicans that Durkan and co-proprietor John Lynch have started importing them to service the Irish catering trade.

"We liked it so much we bought into the company," Durkan told Reuters. "We've got the franchise for Ireland and we've been inundated. It's been absolutely massive."

He has no doubts that the smoking ban - the most comprehensive ever imposed in Europe - will change Ireland's pub culture, luring people out of crowded smoke-filled drinking holes into the fresh air.

"People are starting to adapt to al fresco eating and drinking. A lot of people are going to eat and drink outside in Ireland, which they haven't done until now."

City councils could benefit financially if, as expected, there is an increase in the number of applications from publicans for licences to serve food and drink outside.

Dublin City Council charges €100 to process such a licence and €170 per year for each square metre of pavement space. Publicans also have to pay €125 per year for each of their outdoor tables.

"We haven't yet seen an increase in the number of applications for licences (since the ban was announced) but there have certainly been more queries from publicans," a spokewoman for the council said.

Sales of outdoor furniture and heaters could also increase. The prospect of huddling around a garden table in mid-winter, trying to light a cigarette in the face of a biting wind whipping in off the Irish Sea might not appeal to everyone.

But for diehard smokers who cannot bear to part company with their favourite pub, the patiolas might just see them through.