For Dan M. The dog's owner was asked politely to tie the dog outside before the owner announced it was in fact a service dog. The dog's owner was sitting at the table and holding the dog IN HER LAP. Then the barista asked the dogs owner to put the dog on the floor. The dog's owner REFUSED to do that. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, access rights are based on "reasonable accommodations." While the US Department of Justice has not issued any guidance one way or the other on this specific issue, you can apply the principle of "reasonableness" to any situation to see whether the ADA permits/requires it or not. Reasonable accommodation means that you take ALL interests into account when evaluating a specific situation, not just whether the individual with a disability thinks it is reasonable from their perspective, but whether it is reasonable for ALL. The health department has stated there is a sanitary and health risk of food contamination if live animals are near food. An exception has traditionally been made for service animals based on the long history of guide dogs, who are always ON THE FLOOR, tucked under tables, and as far away from the food as possible. The risk of food contamination when the dog is on the floor is very minimal. This is where normal pet owners have their pets during human mealtimes, if not completely out of the dining area. Putting a service dog in a lap is significantly pushing the envelope of safety on this issue. While some customers may leave because of the mere presence of the service animal, it is not possible to accommodate the disabled patron at all without the service animal. That situation falls in the favor of the person with the service dog. However, in the case of having the dog close to the food, the balance shifts. The business will lose even more customers, but for something that is NOT STRICTLY NECESSARY. This is unreasonable because it creates an undue (avoidable and excessive) burden for the business person. However, if the business owner has no objection to the dog in a person's lap and is willing to do additional cleaning to satisfy health department regulations, then the business is permitted to make an exception IF THEY WISH. They don't have to.Some owners will claim that their dog is not able to work from the floor. Since there is no legitimate job a small service dog can do that a larger one cannot also do, including "alerting," this is a problem of the owner's own creation. If they failed to train the dog to be able to work from the floor, that is their fault and within their power to correct. It is not reasonable to expect a restaurant to compensate for the handler's lack of foresight or poor choice in dog. That said, the barista WAS ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. And she never demanded the dog's owner should announce anything to customers, she said the dog's owner should ask if the management is ok with the dog being in her lap. I recommend you educate yourself better on the issue. read more