While it may be illegal to smoke on a restaurant terrace, the odds are pretty good that aside from upsetting other people, nothing will happen.
Five months after the government passed legislation to ban smoking on terraces, and in parks and sports fields most municipal police officers don't have the legal right to issue tickets.
The Journal de Montreal says currently only Sûreté du Québec police officers and the Health Ministry inspectors are empowered to enforce the law.
Individual municipalities have to submit a request to the Health Ministry to authorize their police departments to do so and only Longueuil and Granby have done so.
The government considers the law to be a health issue rather than a public safety issue, but the Quebec Coalition for tobacco control says enforcement of the law is inconsistent and has urged municipalities including Montreal to submit applications.