Does Your Poolroom Allow Players to Eat While Playing?

I will go against the grain. I will wash my hands and expect anyone playing on my table to do the same before the game starts. I had my table assembled by RKC and was right there helping him for a couple of days. It is not likely that I will ever be able to get Glen back to my place to tune up and recover my Diamond so I take very good care of it.

Chris has a very unique and well kept room that is small enough that it could be well maintained, Chris I have invested a fair amount of time and money on one table and I protect it fiercely. I can't imagine how difficult it would be to try and keep your tables pristine with patrons who might not know better then to touch cloth that will change dramatically when any kind of serious contamination starts.

I think you have done as much as you can realistically by trying to teach customers through verbiage on the menu or by whatever other means you have chosen.

I make it to a real poolhall that has a huge menu about once a month and it is very evident how stained and nasty the cloth is when you see it infrequently. It is your place and you make the rules, If you can teach customers right from wrong and respect the game while still running a successful business then more power to you.
 
BassMasterK said:
If by "serious pool players" you meant touring pros then you should know most of them have been run off az forums long ago. But if you mean people who are passionate about the game of pool I think you have had many reasonable responses here. Just because they didn't all agree with you doesn't mean that they are wrong, that you are wrong, or that they are not serious players. I worked at a pool hall for many years. We served food. I can't remember one case where someone ruined the cloth from food. Trying masse shots when they shouldn't have been? Yes. Trying illegal jump shots when they shouldn't have been? Yes. Food? Never. It just never happened. Now if you are serving wings dripping in sauce and you are convinced those will be the end of your business, then don't serve them.

You mention people not having respect for the tables, hitting the balls with the end of the cues, raking balls with the cues, etc. But those things don't involve the food which was the crux of your question. People can love playing pool and still need to eat or still need to drink something and that doesn't diminish their love for pool. Honestly I understand where you are coming from, I like my equipment to be in pristine condition, and as a player I am sure I would love to come play on your tables. That being said, the reason the replies are so one sided is because you run things in a very unusual way from most of the rest of the business. As many have said, it appears to be working for you so that is great and best of luck in the future but please don't think that just because the responses are not the way you hoped that means there is a lack of serious players giving input.
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Thanks for your well thought out response. To clarify, by "serious players" I am not referring to skill level. I'm referring to players of any level who have a love, passion and respect for the game, for the rules, for the equipment, and for their opponent at all times. I just wish we had more of them here, but we are located in a very rural location and we don't serve alcohol, which makes us more of a family oriented poolroom.
 
Since it's a pretty interesting thread, and going strong, unlike a lot, I'll give another opinion. Food is not the worst enemy.

The worst enemy is the ones who don't chalk properly. They chalk with their bridge hand, getting chalk all over the table. They don't brush the chalk lightly over the tip away from the table. They grind, drill, and eviscerate that chalk over the tip, with the bridge hand, right over the table. Their hands get dirty, their cues get dirty, and the table gets filthy. If no vac, the chalk and dirt stay, piling up under the cloth, on the pockets, and on the rails.

To really understand table cleanliness, you have to get beyond just the food. Though I will admit, I hate seeing those drink stains on the table. Pretty much the sign of the times, isn't it? Is it the cost of running a pool room? I don't know. But hopefully some other things to think about.

All the best,
WW
 
If you have a separate dining area, then having a rule is ok. If the players eat at the table, you are going to have an uphill battle.

When I was a teenager, I had a summer job with a guy who was a land surveyor. We'd drill in concrete and rock to fasten the land markers, even work with sement sometimes often walking in rough terrain in all kinds of awful weather, then he would eat his lunch sandwich without washing his hands (covered in concrete dust and dirt from the trail, <shudder>. I liked the guy, but that was a nasty thing to watch. That's the equivalent of eating at the pool table, to me. Chalk is not good seasoning, neither is buttcrack sweat and fecal matter from all the shady and shabby characters at the poolroom who don't wash their hands ever. That nasty mixture is all over the cloth. We're lucky they stopped using as much lead in chalk at least, or there would actually be a significant risk of lead poisoning of the non-handwashers. Then again, that might not be so bad after all... So I wash my hands before meals, after meals and once in a while every couple of hours of playing.

But again, most of the people at the pool hall don't even respect the equipment, or even their own bodies hygienic needs. So, IMO, making a dining area is the way to go, if at all possible. I think it would significantly increase the chance of at least having the grease be rubbed off before it reached the cloth of the pool table. I wouldn't put money on people actually washing their hands, though. We have a dining area in my pool room and I've never noticed grease staining of the cloth. But chalk and the other stuff? Yes, and plenty of it. Chalk is what's going to ruin your cloths playability. Chalk is abrasive and will tear your cloth apart from the inside. So if you want it to last, vacuum often and carefully. You would have to be very unlucky to get a food/drink stain that significantly changed the playability of the cloth. I'm not saying it's impossible, but I've played 16 years seriously and I've never seen it.

I hope at least you don't have a sign that forbids masse and jump shots? That's a pet peeve of mine. I'd never go to a place where I couldn't shoot all the shots of the game. I'd rather stay home, no matter how pristine the equipment.
 
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Cuebuddy said:
I will go against the grain. I will wash my hands and expect anyone playing on my table to do the same before the game starts. I had my table assembled by RKC and was right there helping him for a couple of days. It is not likely that I will ever be able to get Glen back to my place to tune up and recover my Diamond so I take very good care of it.

Chris has a very unique and well kept room that is small enough that it could be well maintained, Chris I have invested a fair amount of time and money on one table and I protect it fiercely. I can't imagine how difficult it would be to try and keep your tables pristine with patrons who might not know better then to touch cloth that will change dramatically when any kind of serious contamination starts.

I think you have done as much as you can realistically by trying to teach customers through verbiage on the menu or by whatever other means you have chosen.

I make it to a real poolhall that has a huge menu about once a month and it is very evident how stained and nasty the cloth is when you see it infrequently. It is your place and you make the rules, If you can teach customers right from wrong and respect the game while still running a successful business then more power to you.
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Don't get me wrong. When I had a home table, I never ate while playing and if I had friends over I worked it so that the food happened at a different time. I'm soon to get another table and I am positive I will follow the same guidelines.

But at the pool hall I worked at, it just wasn't an issue. There was natural wear and tear on the equipment. We would tell people not to have drinks near the tables and not to sit on them. I just never remember one single incident where someone spilled anything or ended up staining the table. Now the mad chalkers who insisted on chalking like they were drilling for a diamond at the bottom of their chalk, all while holding the tip over the table....that used to drive me a bit crazy. But it all comes with running a business where you have many different types of people coming through.
 
ChrisinNC said:
Thanks for your well thought out response. To clarify, by "serious players" I am not referring to skill level. I'm referring to players of any level who have a love, passion and respect for the game, for the rules, for the equipment, and for their opponent at all times. I just wish we had more of them here, but we are located in a very rural location and we don't serve alcohol, which makes us more of a family oriented poolroom.
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No problem at all Chris. Like I said, I appreciate where you are coming from. Your love and respect for the game is on one level and it sounds like most of your clientele is at another level and that can be a bit disheartening. But it sounds like your business is working well so I say cheers to that and best luck to you in the future. And perhaps your love and respect for the sport will rub off on others as you establish acceptable guidelines. I hope things keep running smoothly for your establishment for another hundred plus years.
 
BassMasterK said:
Don't get me wrong. When I had a home table, I never ate while playing and if I had friends over I worked it so that the food happened at a different time. I'm soon to get another table and I am positive I will follow the same guidelines.

But at the pool hall I worked at, it just wasn't an issue. There was natural wear and tear on the equipment. We would tell people not to have drinks near the tables and not to sit on them. I just never remember one single incident where someone spilled anything or ended up staining the table. Now the mad chalkers who insisted on chalking like they were drilling for a diamond at the bottom of their chalk, all while holding the tip over the table....that used to drive me a bit crazy. But it all comes with running a business where you have many different types of people coming through.
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Its also the case at the room in Denver that I occasionally get to visit(120 mile drive)has a strong business at nights with the league players and general bangers and plenty of tournaments. The older more serious players seem to come in on the weekend mornings, and thats when I go there, The restrooms and parking lot sometimes look like a bomb has gone off when I arrive. I'm sure that part of the reason that the cloth gets so stained is because of how busy the room is at nights.

When you only get to play on these tables about once every six weeks I can really see the equipment degrade.

Congrats on getting a new table soon:cool:
 
Life is tough. Find a way to overcome this concern. Pool rooms are closing now a regular basis. Selling food and alcohol is an important component to staying in business.
 
WildWing said:
Since it's a pretty interesting thread, and going strong, unlike a lot, I'll give another opinion. Food is not the worst enemy.

The worst enemy is the ones who don't chalk properly. They chalk with their bridge hand, getting chalk all over the table. They don't brush the chalk lightly over the tip away from the table. They grind, drill, and eviscerate that chalk over the tip, with the bridge hand, right over the table. Their hands get dirty, their cues get dirty, and the table gets filthy. If no vac, the chalk and dirt stay, piling up under the cloth, on the pockets, and on the rails.

To really understand table cleanliness, you have to get beyond just the food. Though I will admit, I hate seeing those drink stains on the table. Pretty much the sign of the times, isn't it? Is it the cost of running a pool room? I don't know. But hopefully some other things to think about.

All the best,
WW
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ABSOLUTELY AGREE ABOUT YOUR TAKE on all these PIGS who have no clue as to the proper way to chalk a cue AND THEN LEAVE SKID MARKS ALL OVER THE TABLE. Watch a video of Cuelemans chalking his cue. He lightly caresses his tip ever so gentle like he might lick a ladies nipple, or so he once told me:thumbup:
 
Black-Balled said:
Tough call. Maybe you cant have both realities simultaneously.



People need to/ gonna eat. They don't need to play pool.
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Yeah what if there’s a 30 second shot clock and diabeetus strikes? lol

And we’re like no...he knew the rules when he signed up.

He can forfeit or....if he dies he dies


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I play in several rooms in Colorado and all allow you to eat and play pool. I do it often as I try to multi task with my free time and want to play a little pool while grabbing a meal during leagues or during my lunch break.

After reading most of this thread, I would respectfully suggest that maybe you’re a bit too anal about this food thing. I mean stains are unsightly and unfortunate when they happen but they won’t negatively impact the play of the table if they attended to quickly. I certainly would not expect a room owner to change out the cloth if it was stained. Worn out yes, but not stained. I have a feeling you care more about the stain issue than your customers do.

Maybe you value the pristine conditions you maintain, that you are rightfully proud of, more than the obvious lost revenue, but I’m guessing you posted this question because you’re noticing this rule’s effect on your business. If not, and you’re just curious, that’s cool but I would just suggest you examine why this staining issue is so important to you as it goes against convention in my experience.

As a frequent user of pool halls for many years, I want a place to play that maintains their equipment with the best possible playing conditions but I don’t expect the tables to look like an immaculate basement table in a home would. I also want good food to eat and an overall pleasant environment and good completion. Again, as others have said, it’s your room and you make the rules, but I think you would agree the rule is an inconvenience to your patrons.
 
It’s a interesting dilemma. I assume most pool rooms are operated by serious players. They’d like nothing more than to cater to the desires of the serious player. But pool isn’t as popular as it was in the 60s or 80s. Business is driven by Joe Public. If your market allows you to stand on principle and you’re able to keep your doors open, run your room as you wish. I imagine most rooms today don’t have that luxury.


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bbb said:
for me eating while playing is tough because i dont want to get grease/ketchup etc on my cue !!!!!
i respect the tables and wouldnt soil them either
my room does let you eat while playing tho
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Like bbb I respect the equipment and will not introduce any food or beverage near the table or play with food on my hands.
Yes my 3 local rooms permit it.
To stop the clock while players eat is more than fair and generous. There will always be people that make their own rules or have no regard for anyone else’s.
Try to find the balance of protecting your room and accommodating customers. Don’t sell yourself short. Maybe separate area for munchers with tables strictly for that.
I have a table in my house. A few people thought they would get something delivered and eat while playing. Told them we can eat in the kitchen and resume pool after.
 
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hang-the-9 said:
I don't think I have run across a room that has any rules against food except maybe to keep it off the tables. One of the big local rooms with players, Snookers in RI, brings you food to your table, while you are playing. Every other place I play in does the same thing, I have not seen any tables messed up with food. And the drink spills are pretty rare also since the regulars help the staff keep an eye on people mistreating the equipment.

There are rules against powder and chalk color use that I have seen, but never one for no eating during a game, again outside of keep the food and drinks away from the tables.
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^^^^^^^^^This pretty much sums it up for me also ^^^^^^^^^^^^^
 
I wonder how many people that patronize this particular room play pool until they get hungry and then leave to go eat somewhere else. As for me as a room owner I wanted people to eat at our place and continue to play pool. My observations were that they would slow down their pool game to eat and pick it back up after finishing. Meanwhile the table time was ticking away.

I can't even begin to calculate how much extra table time we earned because people were continuing to play and staying put while they ate. I would guess that added a minimum of one hour to their stay. Multiple that times eighteen tables, once a day and the numbers are staggering. Let's say only half those tables had people eating while they played. That could easily mean an extra $100 in income daily or well over $30,000 a year! If somehow there are one or two drinks a year spilled on my cloth because of this, then so be it.
 
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jay helfert said:
I wonder how many people that patronize this particular room play pool until they get hungry and then leave to go eat somewhere else. As for me as a room owner I wanted people to eat at our place and continue to play pool. My observations were that they would slow down their pool game to eat and pick it back up after finishing. Meanwhile the table time was ticking away.

I can't even begin to calculate how much extra table time we earned because people were continuing to play and staying put while they ate. I would guess that added a minimum of one hour to their stay. Multiple that times eighteen tables, once a day and the numbers are staggering. Let's say only half those tables had people eating while they played. That could easily mean an extra $100 in income daily or well over $30,000 a year! If somehow there are one or two drinks a year spilled on my cloth because of this, then so be it.
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By letting them know up front that we are stopping their pool time when their food comes out so they can eat without being charged for their pool, they realize we are enforcing this policy to maintain the quality of the tables, for everyone's benefit, as opposed to trying to maximize our profits. Most of our regulars learn this rule and accept it, understanding that is how we operate. As we are the only nice poolroom within 50 miles, we've had no problems losing regular customers due to this, at least that I know of. Of course you can't please everyone, and we don't try to.

The only time it becomes a potential issue is during tournament nights when players order food while playing in the tournament. Most of them have learned that if they place their order in the middle of a match, when that match is over, I'll allow them time to eat their food before calling them for their next match.

In certain situations where matches needing to be played are holding up the tournament and I need to have them start playing their next match ASAP, I have been known to bend the rules for players that I know will be extra careful - such as if they agree to use a fork/knife to eat their fries or wrapping their sandwich in a napkin to eat, as opposed to their hands.
 
How about having a certification program for customers?

Each customer could be "certified" to do certain actions, e.g.:

Eat while playing.
Jumping without damage to table.
Masse' shots
Playing on the most difficult tables
etc.

If a player wants to engage in those things, he has to first get a "certificate" (permission in whatever form) from the house that shows he is able to do those things without damaging the house or equipment.

Jeff Livingston
 
chefjeff said:
How about having a certification program for customers?

Each customer could be "certified" to do certain actions, e.g.:

Eat while playing.
Jumping without damage to table.
Masse' shots
Playing on the most difficult tables
etc.

If a player wants to engage in those things, he has to first get a "certificate" (permission in whatever form) from the house that shows he is able to do those things without damaging the house or equipment.

Jeff Livingston
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Makes perfect sense, but sounds kind of over the top. As far as players wanting to play on the most difficult tables when they don't have the skill level to benefit from it, I take care of that problem by keeping those 2 tables covered up. A 9-foot table with 4-1/8" corners, and a 10-foot table with 4-1/2" corners.

There's something about a covered up table that is so enticing to players coming in here who have never been in here before, and they often ask why they are covered. They often ask to play on those covered up tables, even if there are numerous open tables available. They are instructed by our waitresses that they have to get the proprietor's OK (me) to play on those tables. Most of the time, they are just ball bangers that I don't want on those tables. If I see they are skilled players, then I have no problem removing the cover for them to play, and I might even end up playing with them.

Of course, when we have a waiting list for tables and have a covered up table available, then we'll pick one of the regulars to move to that table. I understand it looks bad to have people waiting for a table, if they see a unoccupied covered up table.
 
I'd really be interested in knowing how much table time I lost in a year by putting everyone on "pause" while they ate.

If you don't know, then you're not exploring your options as a business owner. If it's only costing you pennies a day then keep doing what you want, if you're talking $100 per week plus...then I might have to rethink my business plan.

Must be a way to find out on your computer set up or to start keeping track and see.
 
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