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True Story: Asked to leave Cigar Lounge. :-(

True Story: Asked to leave Cigar Lougne. What would you do?

  • Be indignant & just leave...it's not worth it (follow-up w/ BBB later).

    Votes: 19 67.9%

  • Pitch a 'fit' (and maybe get thrown out / arrestted), and stand your ground.

    Votes: 1 3.6%

  • Art is King!

    Votes: 8 28.6%
  • Total voters
    28
The Count of Merkur Cristo

The Count of Merkur Cristo

B&B's Emperor of Emojis
My Cigar friends:
Not long ago, while I was on business in a town not far from my home in Louisiana, I stopped by a cigar lounge (which shall remain nameless), to have a smoke and a drink.
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While I did preveiw the large humidor inside, I decided to smoke my own.

Having ordered and received my drink from the vast bar...I sat down in a large leather (overstuffed), lounge chair, lite my cigar and began reading thru the local papers.
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While not bothering any of the other guests...not long after...the Owner came over to my chair (and didn't even offer to 'take me aside'), stated (within 'earshot' of others), that it's 'customary' for guest to buy his cigars and not bring there own (BYOC).

I stood up and countered with, "Sir, I just bought your liquor (2dbl Jameson Irish Whiskey 'on-the-rocks'), what kind of lounge is this?

Without getting into the 'weeds', he tried to impress upon me this 'garbage' about having the right to to set rules and refuse service (and asked me if I didn't like it...to leave).
Shoulder Shrug.jpg


Myself not wanting to get into a heated conversation (thus 'lowering' myself to such crude cigar lounge tactics...and I am a gentleman btw), on the merits of cigar lounge semantics, I finished my drink and left the establishment (not after leaving the Owner with my comment..."You'll hear from me again" [I did contact the BBB...updates to follow]).
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This ever happen to you and if so (and not if),...what would you do in my case
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"Cigar smoking knows no politics. It's about the pursuit of pleasure, taste, and aroma." Anonymous
 
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cursethis

cursethis

I'd play innocent and tell him that I'll be happy to buy a cigar as soon as I've finished the one I was currently enjoying. I would then promptly exit after finishing my cigar, while making eye contact and smiling at the a-hole.

The rule of thumb is that you should buy something if you BYOC. You did that when you purchased the drink.

Oh... and if he pressed me further and wanted me to buy the cigar ASAP? I'd immediately down my drink, tell him that I was planning to spend more, but that I did not appreciate his tone, and promptly exit in a way to make him look like an ***. I'd then blast him on Yelp, Google, and any other review site to drag down his ratings. BBB is useless... tarnishing his reputation through review sites will have more of an impact.
 
oc_in_fw

oc_in_fw

Fridays are Fishtastic!
While Art is indeed king, I didn't feel the need to vote that way, as it is obvious. I would have just finished my drink and left, remembering never to go there again. Were they a chain, I would probably make a complaint to their headquarters- especially if they did not have a sign at the entrance saying that you could not BYOC. I bet the mark up on the drink was every bit as high as the mark up on the cigars. With internet prices being the way that they are, it is stupid for a brick and mortar to act this way. Yeah, you brought your own, but who is to say that you wouldn't have popped into the humidor for an impulse buy.
 
oc_in_fw

oc_in_fw

Fridays are Fishtastic!
cursethis said:
I'd play innocent and tell him that I'll be happy to buy a cigar as soon as I've finished the one I was currently enjoying. I would then promptly exit after finishing my cigar, while making eye contact and smiling at the a-hole.

The rule of thumb is that you should buy something if you BYOC. You did that when you purchased the drink.

Oh... and if he pressed me further and wanted me to buy the cigar ASAP? I'd immediately down my drink, tell him that I was planning to spend more, but that I did not appreciate his tone, and promptly exit in a way to make him look like an ***. I'd then blast him on Yelp, Google, and any other review site to drag down his ratings. BBB is useless... tarnishing his reputation through review sites will have more of an impact.
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Yep- BBB is worthless. Yelp hits them where it hurts.
 
Toothpick

Toothpick

Needs milk and a bidet!
I might have looked for the most inexpensive cigar in the shop and bought it, using a credit card. Then sat back down and enjoyed my own smoke.
 
Commander Quan

Commander Quan

Commander Yellow Pantyhose
I guess it depends on what kind of a establishment it was. I've been to cigar bars that are firstly a bar, but offers a small selection of cigars in a display case, but most of the business is focused on the drink. I've also been to cigar lounges that are basically cigar shops with a small bar where the main focus is on the cigar. The former I have no issue with bringing your own, the later would be faux pas. (You can't bring your own popcorn into the movie even if you buy the large soda.) I also know there are places that charge a cutting fee similar to corkage if you do not buy cigars from them.

Since you said they have a large humidor I would guess that cigar sales are a large portion of the income so it probably falls into the second category from above. The owner probably could have been more tactful in handling the situation, but it's his lounge, and his rules.
 
Rhody

Rhody

I'm a Lumberjack.
Sounds like someplace you do not need to be anyway. Folks like that are not in business very long.

Agree with others BBB is a waste if he's even a paying member.
 
Doc4

Doc4

Stumpy in cold weather
Staff member
Was the rule posted somewhere visible?

If you had just come in to smoke your stogie, I'd be on his side. Since you bought a drink and brought your own stogie, it's a bit more of a grey area ... but I'm still a bit of a mind to compare this to restaurants that allow patrons to bring wine from home to drink with dinner ... they usually still expect a "corkage fee" for the courtesy.

That said, this is a great example of where poor "people skills" on the part of the Owner took a delicate situation and turned it sour.

Mind you, when he opened with it being "customary" to not BYOC, that may have been your chance to play the "golly, I didn't know ... nobody mentioned that ... most lounges I go to are okay with a bit of BYOC from paying customers ... I'll certainly remember that for the future, and thanks for bringing it to my attention" card and see if that placates him: you weren't flouting his custom, you needed educating about it and now he's done it ... mission accomplished.

But so much of all this is in the attitude and tone of voice, that we'll never grasp through the printed word.
 
August West

August West

I probably would have extinguished my cigar, slammed back the drink, then left peaceably.



Later I would have come back with my fiends and burned the place to the ground.
 
The Count of Merkur Cristo

The Count of Merkur Cristo

B&B's Emperor of Emojis
My Cigar Friends:
Your advice about skipping BBB for Yelp & Google for redress is of great help and duly noted... and I thank all for you for your responses, support and for sharing. :thumbsup:

Keep 'em coming!
Just my 2 cents.gif


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“A cigar—it’s not so much a [passion] as the crown and hallmark of pleasure”. Count Leo Tolstoy
 
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EL Alamein

EL Alamein

Totally out of line for the owner unless it's posted as a rule upon entering that the cigar enjoyed must be bought from the establishment. And if that rule were posted I would have never passed through their door.

My favorite cigar lounge, Mahogany in Philadelphia, has been closed, a few year ago, because of strong arm tactics from its landlord, Ashton Cigars. It was the ultimate in cigar lounges. You could walk in and smoke your own or buy one if you didn't have one. They did a an unbelievable amount business on this policy according to the owner, whom I'd become acquainted with over the years. It was thee classic English Gentleman's club with all the accoutrements and an excellent menu. They even had a copy of Arthur Pan's "Churchill" hanging in their front lounge. They rivaled the old Union League of Philadelphia in this regard (and I've enjoyed both).

They had rentable humidor lockers if you were a regular member so you could smoke whatever you liked.

Ashton raised the rent to astronomical levels to drive out the owner of Mahogany so they could take over and establish their own (nouveau) cigar bar and reap the profits. Gone is the English club atmosphere and leather chairs as well as the commradere that was established.

I will never patronize Ashton again because of their greedy behavior in this incident. A pox upon them.

Chris
 
oc_in_fw

oc_in_fw

Fridays are Fishtastic!
Andy77 said:
This is where I land. Owner didn't do anything unethical- doesn't mean he wasn't rude.
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Yep. Handled correctly, I would have said "oh, I wasn't aware of that. Once I am done, I am going to need another cigar anyways".
Doc4 said:
"Nice cigar lounge you have here. Shame if something were to ... happen to it."

Ahh ... the "Ouch Approach".
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Have Jay and Tony ever been seen in the same place at the same time? :lol:
 
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