But on final approach, Lally concludes, patrons will be able to live with the ban.

“I’ve talked to most of them, and they said it’s not a big deal,” Lally says.

Business As Usual, For Some

“We’re anticipating a change,” says a manager at John Harvard’s who declined to be identified by name. “It comes with the territory. We’re concerned, not worried…. We may lose business, we may not.”

This attitude—part resigned, part ambivalent—is typical of many Cambridge restaurant managers and owners who say they are waiting to see what types of effects the ban will have on their business.

“We don’t have any choice,” says Claire Noonan, manager of Redline.

“To be honest, I’m kind of glad,” she adds, noting that the low ceilings in the bar cause heavy buildup of smoke.

Karen E. Lepri ’99, a bartender at the Green Street Grill, says she is generally in favor of the ban.

“I think it’s a good thing for workers’ health and for customers’ health, too,” Lepri says. “And it will probably be a good thing for my health.”

Lepri also says she disagrees with critics who predict a drop-off in business.

“I think ultimately the drop in business will not last long,” she says. “The initial descent in business that Boston experienced is mainly because people had another option.”

“I just moved here from San Francisco, where I’m used to there being no smoking in bars. I never witnessed an argument outside of a bar,” Lepri says. “At the same time, it depends on the street or neighborhood that your bar is in. There’s a lot of foot traffic [in Cambridge]. It is a pretty narrow sidewalk, it’s incredibly diverse. It’s likely there could be a conflict anywhere.”

While some smokers are clearly upset about the ban, others are less agitated.

The manager says the only complaints heard at John Harvard’s have been from employees.

Kelly Thompson Clark, President and CEO of the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce, echoes many of the opponents of the citywide ban in saying that she would prefer a statewide ban, so that Cambridge’s bars won’t have a competitive disadvantage relative to bars in more smoker-friendly towns nearby.