Altenburg pub Zum Eck” closes: Last round at a special price!

Altenburg pub Zum Eck” closes: Last round at a special price!

A piece of pub culture is coming to an end in Altenburg: the traditional pub “Zum Eck” will close forever on August 16th. The operator, Carola Petermann, has been running the restaurant since December 2021 and has invested a lot in the appearance and atmosphere of the pub during this time. With around 10,000 euros invested in the interior design, she wanted to preserve the old charm and at the same time attract new regular guests. But the reality looks different. The pub has often been empty in recent weeks, and now she only has a few days left to write the preliminary final chapter before the doors slam shut forever.

Last weekend, guests once again had the opportunity to enjoy the last hours in the pub at special prices: a beer is available for just 2.50 euros, schnapps for 2 euros and non-alcoholic drinks for 1 euro. Many regular guests, including the regretful Beate Sporbert-Anger, are sad about the impending closure. "It's really a shame that a place like this is leaving for many of us. This is where we met and felt comfortable," she says.

The challenges of a smoking restaurant

“Zum Eck” was a purely drinking bar with no food on offer and could therefore be operated as a smoking restaurant. According to legal regulations in Germany, these special establishments are still allowed to allow smoking under certain circumstances. The respective non-smoking protection laws vary greatly from state to state. The aim of these regulations is to protect non-smokers from passive smoking and to create smoke-free environments. However, in a typical smoking bar, such as “Zum Eck”, many requirements must be observed, including the ban on food and snacks and the limitation of the area to a maximum of 75 square meters in order to meet the relevant requirements.

Petermann reports that the business is no longer viable, especially with a monthly lease of 2,300 euros. Despite the small number of regular customers and the special atmosphere that “Zum Eck” offered, sales fell short of expectations. It is also reported that the new owners of the establishment, the Albanians, do not yet have any concrete plans for the future of the restaurant.

A look at the legal framework

While the smoking ban is rigorously enforced for many public spaces in Germany, bars with a special policy for smokers can still keep their doors open. However, that doesn't mean that operators can sit back and relax. Violations of the smoking ban regulations can lead to severe sanctions. Fines and even temporary or permanent closures can result if requirements are not followed. This leaves many operators, as was the case with Carola Petermann, navigating in uncertain waters.

It will be seen in Altenburg whether the gap left by “Zum Eck” can be filled quickly or whether the living tradition of drinking bars will continue to suffer. It remains to be seen what the future will bring for the restaurant and whether the new owners can develop a new perspective here. In the last few days, “Zum Eck” will be open again at full capacity - for everyone who wants to say goodbye to this special place.

For more information about the closure of “Zum Eck” and the situation in the industry, visit LVZ. For details on the regulations for smoking bars, see Law Forum and the comprehensive non-smoking protection laws in Germany are being looked at Wikipedia.