I’m 9 days late in this post, BUT as of December 1st of this month, ALL of the Virginia restaurants and bars are now smoke free! The ban does permit smoking in private clubs and in places that have separately ventilated enclosed smoking rooms. Smoking may also be permitted in outside seating options in restaurants, provided they are not enclosed in any way.
I can tell you that I already have noticed a difference in the past week from the smoking ban. There are a few places in Arlington that are notorious for being “smokey,” and I know many people dread going there as a result. It’ll be interesting to see how the venues who hadn’t previously enacted their own smoking ban is effected.
If you want to check out a new restaurant or happy hour now that everywhere is smoke-free, the Washingtonian has a great Happy Hour search feature.