A Missouri restaurant has gone viral for implementing a novel age policy permitting only the grown and seasoned into the establishment.
Bliss Restaurant, a lavish restaurant that serves Caribbean food in the St. Louis suburb of Florissant, has been the talk of the town ever since it opened in mid-May — and for one remarkable reason.
“Women must be at least 30 years old and men must be 35 to enter the business,” according to local station KSDK.
Customers who appear to be too young must show their ID at the front door to earn entry.
“The restaurant is just something for the older people to come do, have a happy hour, come get some good food and not have to worry about some of the young folks who bring some of that drama,” assistant manager Erica Rhodes told the station.
“Of course, we have been getting a little backlash because of our policy, but that’s OK, we’re sticking to our code,” she added.
Some of the backlash can be seen on social media:
This is so stupid. I’m so tired of people thinking that age equates to maturity.
— Chef Flacko (@goldenflacko) June 1, 2024
Bro this policy is discriminatory or exclusionary. They are unfairly targeting younger individuals based solely on their age, rather than their behavior
— ZAQ RIDER (@zaqrider) June 6, 2024
Bliss Restaurant is not yet ready to make business with profit but business with sentiment. That’s not just a good strategy to limit people from eating because of their age
— Winnie Schola (@WinnieSchola) June 6, 2024
This seems like a business model based around a feeling and not a market.
Mid twenties is a major demo to cut out for a restaurants. That industry already operates on a shoe string budget— The Nigga in Black is Back (@KnazzesKoems) June 6, 2024
The amount of restaurants that fail is so high. Dude is like “30+ only and 35 just for males”. He bout to find out it’s old people that will ruin your shit and try to collect a bag.
Half of them don’t believe tipping is real, especially in St. Louis. Yeah good luck I guess.
— DaFluff (@outtafluff) June 6, 2024
“I would tell those younger ones to come patronize the business once you turn 30 or 35 because we’re going to be here for a while,” Rhodes said in response to the backlash.
But not everybody agrees with the critics.
“He has a policy that suits the clientele that he’s trying to draw in, and me being 65, I think he’s on the right track,” Fernando Smith, a patron, told KSDK, referring to the store’s owner, Marvin Pate.
Pate obviously agrees.
“I think Bliss is a home away from home. You can come here and actually feel like you’re at a resort. People will feel like they’re on a vacation,” he told the station.
There is some good news for the youth, though. Pate intends to start offering to-go orders in a few weeks, and those orders should presumably be available to everybody, regardless of age.
As for the food options, Chef Alex Dixon said, “We offer delicious oxtails, fresh snapper, jerk lamb chops, wonderful cabbage, fresh snapper, and more. All of it is delicious and Jamaican-style.”
Nice!
The last time a restaurant went viral for an age limit was early last year when a New Jersey restaurant announced that children under 10 wouldn’t be permitted to dine at their establishment.
Nettie’s House of Spaghetti, an Italian restaurant in Tinton Falls, made the decision because it was “extremely challenging to accommodate children,” they told local station WRRV.
The restaurant also cited “noise levels, lack of space for high chairs, cleaning up crazy messes, and the liability of kids running around the restaurant.”
This time, there was not as much backlash as there was praise and understanding.
Look:
Their business their choice “not news”
— Ralph (@ralphies54) February 14, 2023
I agree with the restaurant. Some parents just let their kids go ham!
— phenyxphyre (@sjmojo21613) February 14, 2023
It’s their business. They can run it however they see fit.
Don’t go there if you don’t agree with their choice.
There. I fixed it for you.
— Roger Bateman (@RogerBa15984347) February 14, 2023
I don’t think when they stuck their necks out to start and open this restaurant, I do not think any of you asked if they need help them so shut up or open your own business, or don’t go their either way shut up.
— Nick (@cip25) February 17, 2023
We can bring our kids to any restaurant because we taught them at a very young age how to act properly. We enjoy each others company while we dine. I hate to go for a nice meal and have the table next to me put an iPad in front of their kids at full volume while they ignore them.
— Foreign Contaminant (@beFreeDontJoin) February 15, 2023
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V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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