Quote Originally Posted by sheffield hatter View Post
You are joking, aren't you?
No. I've heard repeated mention of pubs being allowed to stay open if they serve substantial meals - typically gastropubs or carveries rather than pickled onions or crisps - but not that a person must actually buy a substantial meal. This seemed to be the same irrational musing as back when the smoking ban was being debated. The original idea was that smoking would be banned in pubs if they served - essentially 'substantial' - meals, but this didn't mean that a person could visit a foodie pub and smoke if they didn't order food.