Thu, 01 Jan 1970 01:00:00 +0100Sat, 25 Jul 2026 04:23:33 +0200https://english.radio.cz/changes-attitude-smoking-czech-republic-8072622© 2026 Radio Prague International News agencies reported last week that New Yorkers could breathe a little more easily now as the city's stiff new anti-smoking laws took effect last Sunday. Smokers grumbled as they had to huddle outside in the cold to puff on their cigarettes. The new law, pushed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, an ex-smoker himself, outlaws smoking in bars and restaurants and imposes stiff fines. Some bar and restaurant owners fret that the ban will scare off customers; others hope more non-smokers will visit now that the air is clearer. Curious to find out how such a ban would go down with owners of Czech pubs - where a thick cloud of smoke is part of the experience - I visited a typical Czech smoky pub in the Prague district of Zizkov and asked the bartender what he thought of the idea of a ban on smoking in restaurants. encr@radio.cz (Cesky Rozhlas)webmaster@radio.cz (CRo Webmaster) https://english.radio.cz/sites/default/files/images/kurak1.jpg?timestamp=1697466542 https://english.radio.cz/changes-attitude-smoking-czech-republic-8072622 Radio Prague International Radio Prague International radio.prague.int@gmail.com clean 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9