Restaurant Posting for Handgun Carriers

Various statements (both pro and con) have been made about restaurants who "post" a statutorily permitted prohibition on handguns in their establishment. This posting is permitted under Tennessee law. Now that the law allows (as of approx. July 14) handgun permit holders to carry into restaurants that serve alcohol, how many restaurants will post? My best guess is that it will be very few, particularly among large national chains.

First, let's look at the restaurants where it is currently legal to carry under current law (i.e., those restaurants that don't serve alcohol). How many of them post? McDonalds? Nope. Taco Bell? Nope. KFC? Nope. Arby's? Nope. I can happily say that in East Tennessee, I don't recall seeing a single sign on any of these restaurants and they have had the ability to post for years.

Second, let's look at the restaurants in other states where carrying where alcohol is served has been legal for years. My admittedly anecdotal experience is that I haven't seen them in any of the restaurants. I am reasonably well-traveled and think there is a good likelihood that I would have seen postings somewhere. I was in Florida within the past few months and probably did not go to a single restaurant that did not serve alcohol. I did not see any of them posting. I know Florida allows carrying, but I'm not sure if it allows posting, so the comparison may not be apt. I would love to hear from folks in other states regarding there experiences.

My guess is that there will be very few national chains that post and fewer mom & pop restaurants that post. Most postings will likely be at bars and those will be the kind of bars that most sane people would not want to go to in any event.