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Interview: Coco Zhao, from jazz to M. Butterfly
Week Around the Ists
Shanghaiist loves Boonna Cafe. Now, we have a reason to love it a little more. The artsy coffee shop, favored both by savvy locals and laowais looking for a home away from Shanghai's trendy club hopping crowd, is now smoke free … on Tuesdays.
Yesterday afternoon, Shanghaiist stopped by Boonna for some icy caffeine treats and a little quiet time to ponder the meaning of life. A packed house as usual, but one decidedly smoke free, and several regulars were seen puffing outside in near 40 degree weather. Shanghaiist was moved by the sudden outpour of thoughtfulness, but then we saw the “Smoke Free Tuesdays” sign. No matter, life is good. We wonder if the same policy holds at the other Boonna, admittedly a bit more Marlboro Light than its original incarnation.
On a related note, Arch, another popular café in the city also has a “no smoking” policy for two days during the week: Mondays and Wednesdays, something for Boonna owner Geoffrey to consider perhaps. Regardless, it’s a great first step. Now, if only the rest of the city would follow.
Boonna Cafe, 88 Xinle Lu, Tel: 54046676
Boonna Cafe 2, 57 Fuxing Lu, Tel: 13564832732
Arch, 439 Wukang Lu, Tel: 64660807
Photo from Flickr
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This is a start. I've been run out of a number of decent cafe haunts around town, including Boona, by a few too many side dishes of second hand smoke. The indifference of most smokers in Shanghai--locals and butt-flicking foreigners alike--toward non-smokers unlucky enough to be caught in their cancerous wake is simply odious, i.e., it stinks. Socially, we need to stop giving smokers a free pass.
In Washington State we just passed a law outlawing smoking in bars and you can't smoke withing two meeters of a door outside. Sure the smokers hate it but the non-smoking majority think it is awesome.
Jake, I think that the rule is within 25 feet of doors and windows, not two meters, but the practical application of it seems to be "so that smoke does not enter the building through windows, doors, or ventilation ducts."
It makes for some occasionally funny sights, like clusters of people nearly huddled in small impromptu "smoking zones" that happened to be sandwiched between two buildings' 25-foot zones.
Except in Belltown, where the attitude of course is more, "Screw you, and the law!"
But of course that rather describes Belltown's angle on most anything, I guess. ;-)
Your fellow Washingtonian,
Mark
Doooooah. Sorry for the double, slightly varied post (screen error).
I lived in Seattle for 12 glorious, guitar-driven years. What's great about that city is that outside of bars, clubs and AA meetings, people just don't tolerate smoking in shared spaces. Additionally, Seattle smokers tend to have a conscience, and take into consideration others around them before lighting up.
I’m always pleased to come across what could be loosely termed ‘polite smokers’ in this town—where a little courtesy goes a long way.
This is a Shanghai trend I can get behind.
My building just instituted smoke free elevators. Hurrah!!! Now if only people would follow that rule.
My first year here i carried a portable "NO SMOKING" sign around and used it to clear the air around me. It actually worked alot. I also installed largge NoSmoking signs in the elevators and those worked surprisingly well too with very very few violators. Since we have apartments in 4 of 8 buildings in our complex, I installed these in all the lifts I could access and the lifts are better for it. (If only I could get rid of the fishy smell from the ayis dripping fish "juice" from moring grocery shopping. Sigh.
The smoking trend here in SH has actually gotten alot better in the past 3+ years. Nonsmoking venues exist more annd more including American chains like Starbucks, McDonalds, KFC and also other places like Moon River Diner who "get it"
If other places could only follow their lead AND if more people who smoke would only be more courteous, that would be great!
Ginger Cafe & Deli has been completely smoke-free from the very day it opened.
299 复兴西路靠近华山路
299 Fuxing Lu West, near Huashan lu
Tel 6433-9437