Cities irked by scantily clad baristas

BONNEY LAKE, Wash., May 27 (UPI) -- Bonney Lake, Wash., has become the latest city in the region to explore action against coffee houses that feature scantily clad female servers, officials said.

The Bonney Lake City Council has asked its legal staff to explore regulatory measures that can be taken against Cowgirls Espresso, which features bikini and lingerie-clad servers, and Hot Chick-a-Latte, where female servers often use only pasties or scarves to cover their breasts, The (Tacoma, Wash.) News Tribune reported Tuesday.

Officials in the nearby cities of Lakewood and Auburn have previously explored legal avenues of forcing baristas at Cowgirls Espresso locations to cover up. Auburn officials attempted to use labor laws to alter the clothing worn by the servers and Lakewood officials looked into whether the bikinis violated indecent exposure laws. Both cities were unsuccessful in their challenges.

David Gifford, manager of the Washington Department of Health's food safety program, said state rules only require the clothing worn by servers to be clean.

"As long as they're washing their hands and keeping things clean, they're following the law," he said. "There's nothing in there about regulating how much clothing they wear."