East Lansing now has one less location for underage students to hang out with their legal-age friends on late nights.
About two weeks ago, The Peanut Barrel Restaurant, 521 E. Grand River Ave., began enforcement of a policy requiring customers under the age of 21 to exit after the restaurant's kitchen closes at 11:30 p.m.
Underage patrons already inside the establishment at that time will be given a half-hour "last call" to finish their meals and leave by midnight, owner Joe Bell said, but those under 21 will not be admitted after 11:30 p.m.
The new policy will be enforced every day, Bell said.
But on weekends, staff will check IDs at the door starting at 11:30 p.m., and wait staff also will perform ID "sweeps" and ask minors to leave.
The restaurant's policy was enacted after recent incidents involving a "small percentage" of unruly underage customers, Bell said.
"For years and years, we didn't have a problem with those under 21 coming in," he said from behind the Peanut Barrel's bar Sunday. "Lately, we've found it harder to control their behavior - some we have to watch like a hawk."
Bell declined to reveal details of the incidents, but said his restaurant's policy is an appropriate measure for protecting all customers.
The Peanut Barrel, which opened in 1973, draws a steady stream of regular visitors of all ages daily, he said.
"We do not want to discourage people from coming in," Bell said, adding that the restaurant's outdoor patio will remain reserved for customers 21 and older.
"It's all defensive - the last thing in the world we want to do is be inhospitable," he said. "We want to uphold our responsibility to the community and the fact that we are a restaurant until midnight."
In 1999, Bell and Joe Goodsir, owner of Rick's American Café, 224 Abbott Road, co-founded the city's Responsible Hospitality Council to combat alcohol abuse and enforce drinking regulations in the city.
The Peanut Barrel's policy complies with state liquor license laws, East Lansing City Councilmember Vic Loomis said, but the change is a management choice.
"It's the decision an independent business owner is making," Loomis said. "It is well within their right to do so."
Prenursing freshman Shannon O'Donnell said she and her friends head to The Peanut Barrel for a late meal every Thursday night.
"I wouldn't like (leaving) - people go there to eat late," O'Donnell said. "There aren't too many nice, sit-down places here."
The Peanut Barrel is not the first local business to enact such a policy.
Since its opening eight years ago, Spartan Sports Den Bar & Grill, 1227 E. Grand River Ave., has not allowed anyone under 21 in after 6 p.m. nightly unless accompanied by a parent, co-owner Chris Fata said.
"We've done it for eight years," he said. "It's impossible to let minors and people over 21 into the same room and monitor them."
Buffalo Wild Wings, 360 Albert St., has not allowed minors in after 9 p.m. since its opening six years ago, general manager Steve Mellios said.
Similar restrictions for underage patrons also are in place at Crunchy's, 254 W. Grand River Ave. Alison Cox, a manager at the bar and restaurant, said customers younger than 21 are not permitted in the bar after 9 p.m.
"People are always asking if they can come in," Cox said.
Bars permitting underage entrance are becoming harder to find, advertising senior Nick Allen said.
"Around here, there aren't a whole lot of places," he said. "When we go out with my girlfriend and her friends, we can't go to some places because her friends are not of age yet."
Such policies restricts activity for many MSU students, prenursing sophomore Talitha Russell said.
"This is a college town," she said. "It's not just for those 21 and up."
