A gentle reminder

For those who are inexperienced with New Zealands licencing laws, it comes as a bit of a shock to find that bars close at midnight when Christian holidays come around. Christmas day, Good Friday and Palm Sunday are pub and off licence free days. Alcohol can still be bought in restaurants with a meal and in clubs, like casinos and strip clubs, where alcohol service is not the main business.

Those of us in the late night food service industry are well versed in peoples angry confusion when they have to stop partying early on a Saturday. We are also well versed in the extreme alcohol consumption of those who know the bars shut early, so we put up little signs to remind people they are being watched and they should behave like civilised humans. Naturally, not everyone manages it but when less than 1% of customers play up in a night, we take that a win.