While many of us might feel flattered when asked to show ID, the novelty will soon wear off warn restaurateurs caught up in state government plans to scan photo ID on entry into select venues at Kings Cross.
Restaurateur Peter Lew says Barrio Chino, a fixture in the SMH Good Food Guide, falls under the scheme because it has more than 120 seats and open after midnight.
"Nightclubs get busier after midnight, we get quieter. Imagine having to ask a family that comes in for an early midweek dinner that we need to see their IDs and scan them," Lew explains.
With plans to implement the procedure this summer, tourists would be forgiven for thinking they'd stumbled onto the set of a reality TV version of 1984. "This is really questioning my motivation to stay in the Cross," Lew adds.
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