Nantucket Bar Raising Drinking Age to 25
Yes, you read that correctly… if you are under 25 and looking to have some fun in Nantucket this summer, this isn’t the bar for you.
The Gazebo, a popular open-air bar on the island, will no longer serve alcoholic beverages to people under 25-years-old, according to Boston.com. Luke Tedeschi, The Tavern restaurant and Gazebo owner, reportedly made the change only a week ago in an attempt to avoid underage drinking. It’s gotten so bad recently that this was the solution he came up with. “What’s worse than I’ve ever seen is how many underage people are attempting to come in,” he told Boston.com. “Their IDs these days are very hard to detect, a lot of the good IDs will go through scanners we have.”
Tedeschi stated that if he is certain you are of age, with a valid I.D. and without a crowd of kids, then he will welcome you in. He is concerned that when there are hordes of kids, that several end up being underage. Setting minimum age a little bit higher helps him and his staff be certain that they are serving legal drinkers and avoid any liability issues that comes with that. “I don’t need the spring break-type attitude, it’s driving out the people that can [drink] and are of age and that are much more responsible and respectful to not only my staff and other patrons.”
The Gazebo is an oceanside outdoor bar open only for cocktail service and into the evenings. Tedeschi said the bar turns in up to 20 suspected fake IDs to the Nantucket State Police barracks every single day. “It is a privilege to come into my establishment, not a right,” he said. “This is a policy, and I have never claimed it is a law, it is my policy to operate my establishment the way I see fit.”
Click here for the full story from Boston.com.