A man enjoys a cigarette and a drink at Pizzeria Uno in Harvard Square. His days of smoking in public may be limited, as the City Council vote on an ordinance that bans smoking in all restaurants and bars approaches.

Marianne Koole, manager of Grendel’s Den, sits at her bar with a drink. Laughing with patrons, she pauses to take a drag from her cigarette, blowing out the smoke slowly and sharply tapping off the ash.

For Koole and fellow smokers, lighting up has long been an integral part of life in Cambridge drinking establishments—but they may soon have to take their habit outside.

If the city council approves a proposed smoking ban this month, Koole and her smoking patrons will be prohibited from satisfying their craving in indoor public areas.

Smoking has been under fire in Massachusetts for the past few years.

Last year, a smoking ban was passed in Boston, and smoking in public spaces is already strictly regulated in Cambridge.

But the new regulation would unequivocally ban smoking in the city’s restaurants and bars.

Local tavern-keepers disagree on how the ban would affect business, but the vast majority strongly oppose the ordinance, saying the proposed ban is an example of unnecessary government intervention and would mean a major logistical headache.

“The government doesn’t have the right to dictate whether I have the right to smoke or whether [an owner] has the right to allow smoking in his bar,” says Ram Mosher, the bartender at Grendel’s Den. “I’ll have to take smoke breaks, and it’ll be a pain.”

Not everyone in Cambridge opposes the ban. Some non-smoking patrons complain about second-hand smoke, and some restaurant employees say the new ordinance would improve their working environment.

But the ban’s fans and opponents do agree on one thing: a prohibition on smoking would drastically change the bar scene in Cambridge.

A Pain in the Butt

The new ordinance would create unnecessary headaches for minimal gains, many local bar owners say.

Patrick Lee, owner of the Grafton Street, Redline and Temple bars, says the current set of smoking rules in Cambridge is both adequate and thoroughly enforced.

“If it’s your business, you deserve a certain amount of autonomy as to how you feel you should run it,” Lee says. “The current ordinance is flexible and works well.”

Koole says bars like Grendel’s Den—which employs three air filters to remove smoke from the air—should continue to regulate themselves.