Rude Dog Pub and The Library transition to smoke-free in downtown Cape

As many businesses in Cape Girardeau work to reopen while navigating social-distancing guidelines, two popular downtown bars have focused on a different public health concern — smoking.

Rude Dog Pub and The Library both announced changes to their indoor smoking policies over the past week.

The decision at Rude Dog Pub was announced Monday afternoon via a Facebook post with a photo of the pub’s doorway, which has been recently decorated with signs announcing the new change of policy to incoming patrons.

Rude Dog Pub co-owner Mark Weber elaborated on the decision Wednesday afternoon and shared plans to renovate the bar’s entryway to serve as a future outdoor smoking area. Pending necessary approvals and permissions from the City of Cape Girardeau, Weber said he hopes to complete the renovations by August of this year.

Another staple in the downtown drinking scene, The Library, announced it would no longer allow indoor smoking via a Facebook post published the day after the announcement from Rude Dog Pub.

Cathy Thompson, owner of The Library, said she was surprised to hear a similar announcement from Rude Dog Pub and was pleased to have received nothing but positive feedback about her decision as of Wednesday afternoon.

“The deck is still [okay for] smoking and the outside is still [okay for] smoking,” Thompson said.

Thompson said her decision to clear the air inside of her bar was largely due to the venue’s recent top-to-bottom remodeling work. The bar has reopened for business with adjusted outdoor seating areas to better-comply with social-distancing guidelines and allow for more room between tables and patrons.

Nearby at HotShots Sports Bar and Grill, general manager Todd Stroder said his downtown business would not be changing its smoking policy any time soon.

“The people that come here feel like there’s no reason to make this a non-smoking bar,” Stroder said. “It’s never been a non-smoking bar, there’s no reason to change things.”

In 2011, Cape Girardeau voters rejected a proposed smoking ban. Following this week’s announcements from Rude Dog Pub and The Library, only three downtown Cape Girardeau businesses now serve alcohol and allow indoor smoking — HotShots Sports Bar and Grill, Blue Diamond Sports Bar and Shakers Bar.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect the Facebook announcement from Rude Dog Pub being shared on Monday and the Facebook announcement from The Library being shared on Tuesday.