Parisians are prohibited by law from smoking in restaurants but -- being French -- generally refuse to comply.

It remains to be seen how New Yorkers will react to being told that they can't light up in their watering holes. An ordinance against the smoking of cigars or cigarettes in public places went into effect in that city just last month.

In Bermuda, there is no formal legislation on the books on the subject of restaurant smoking -- and it's probably a good thing too.

For though Bermudians, as Premier the Hon. Sir John Swan noted in a speech at the Princess Hotel last year, will exercise religiously and generally watch their health, they also, conflictingly, love their drags.

Currently, Bermudians have pretty much free reign in where they can smoke socially.

As Mrs. Estlyn Harvey of the Environmental Health Office explained: "The law as it applies to smoking applies only to Government buildings. With the exception of the kitchen area and behind counters, we do not prohibit smoking in any cafe or restaurant. Right now, it is up to the individual establishments to set their own policies.'' And so the Island's establishments have -- in many cases coming up with unusual and creative ways of accommodating smokers at the same time as keeping the non-smoking public happy.

At the bustling Fourways Pastry Shop on Reid Street, for example, the smoking and non-smoking sections are alternated biweekly so that both sets of tea and coffee drinkers can take in the parade of human and vehicular traffic that passes its giant picture windows.

"I've actually had people stop smoking because of (the scheme),'' said Fourways manager Ms Rosemarie Belboda.

"They've stopped smoking because they like the view and can't be bothered to switch.'' Across the street from the pastry shop, the proprietor of Rudy's Mid-Town Bistro in the Walker Arcade has tackled the issue by reserving roughly a third of the seats in his 35-seat eatery for those who would like to light up.

"I would love to make it entirely non-smoking but my customers wouldn't stand for it,'' owner and manager Mr. Rudy Gieringer said.

"I get a lot of office workers who can't smoke in their workplaces and come in here for a cigarette and a cup of coffee.'' During the summer, both types of diners have the added option of al fresco eating or puffing in the bistro's outdoor plaza, where, Mr. Gieringer said, "you obviously don't notice if the person next to you is smoking.'' In many instances, a local restaurant's physical layout has determined its policies on smoking.

At the 60-seat Gourmet Store in Hamilton's Windsor Place, for instance, "really wonderful'' ventilation in the two-storey atrium of which the restaurant is a part allows for side-by-side smoking/non-smoking sections, while "good ventilation, high ceilings and three different dining rooms'' ensure that nicotine lovers are always welcome at the Romanoff on Church Street.

At the 70-or-so-seat Once Upon A Table restaurant on Serpentine Road in Pembroke, meanwhile, a small dining area off the main one can accommodate as many as 22 smokers at a time, owner and manager Mr. Llewellyn Harvey said.

The Carriage House restaurant in St. George's, moreover, shares a similar architectural advantage.

"We have two sides to the building,'' a Carriage House staffer explained, " so we can usually accommodate both the people who want to smoke and those who want to stay away from the smokers.'' At those establishments that are not sectioned off or particularly high-ceilinged, however, the policies regarding smoking are often looser and more ad hoc.

Neither, for example, the Fourways restaurant in Paget nor the Plantation Club in Hamilton Parish have puffing sections per se, though each will gladly accept reservations from smokers.

Said Fourways general manager Mr. Gerry Ivers, who could have been speaking for both restaurants: "The size of the (smoking) section varies, depending on the configuration of the tables and the amount of smokers who have come in on a given night. We try to be flexible.'' For all of the efforts on the part of the Island's restaurateurs to satisfy smokers, however, there do appear to be limits to how far they will go and how amenable they'll remain.

Portofino general manager Mr. Dino Valenghi, for example, "strictly'' forbids cigar-smoking in his often bustling dining room, as does Mr. Ivers, who will only permit it in his restaurant's bar.

And like Mr. Gieringer, many of Bermuda's restaurant operators would in their heart of hearts like to see the practice banned from public eateries.

As Mr. Valenghi said: "We try to separate the smokers from the non-smokers but it's sometimes hard to do that. My suggestion to Government is to make every restaurant non-smoking.'' On that subject, however, Environment Minister the Hon. Gerald Simons, who's been asked to consider a ban, has remained mum, Mrs. Harvey said.

CLEARING THE AIR -- Staff tend to their non-smoking customers at the Fourways Pastry Shop in Hamilton this week. The shop alternates its smoking and non-smoking sections biweekly so that all customers can enjoy the view of Reid Street.