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Original poster

Loud Music in Restaurants

25 replies

FrodoAteMyRing · 22/02/2022 20:37

Just that really. Been to a restaurant with a friend and had to shout to understand each other. I asked the waitress if they could turn the volume down, she said yes, but it never happened. So annoying.

This thread is just a place to let ppl whinge about loud restaurant music, really Grin

OP posts:
the80sweregreat · 22/02/2022 20:42

It is annoying
I was in a shop once buying a mobile phone and the music was like a 90s rave. Only louder.
I asked for it to be turned down as I am a bit deaf ( which isn't actually true , but I would have struggled a lot ) and they did it for me.

Ifailed · 22/02/2022 20:43

tell them you won't return, it's about all you can do.

Simonjt · 22/02/2022 20:48

My son is hearing impaired, if restaurants have music playing he can’t follow conversations, it is really frustrating.

PainterMummy · 22/02/2022 20:49

I think it should be advertised, made known, before you book if there is loud music or live music. I wear hearing aids. Hearing aids don’t cure you if hearing kids, they help you to hear. Hearing loss is not just volume but also sounds/tones. Some tones I hear just give, others not so much. So wearing hearing aids, it can be painful when certdinsoubds/tones are amplified. We went to a Brazilian bbq the other week. They had a godawful guy singing along to background music and he was so squeaky voiced and shrill it was a nightmare for me. Painful. Plus I couldn’t hear any of my family. He started after we were seated and started eating so we had to stay.

Had I known, I would not have gone there. Consequently, we ate quickly and left. Didn’t get more drinks, no dessert etc so they lost s fair bit of what a group of 6 adults would normally get.

WildFlowerBees · 22/02/2022 21:02

I stopped going anywhere that plays music, it doesn't create a nice atmosphere. I want to hear the person I'm talking to. If staying at a hotel I don't want to be blasted out with jazz music at 8am over my breakfast.

I can't imagine how awful it is for those with sensory sensitivities. Why can't we just have some peace and quiet in an already noisy world?

Jaggerdagger · 22/02/2022 21:04

Has anyone been to the Ivy Asia in Manchester? Now THAT is some loud music.

I think I would marginally still prefer that to no music at all though, especially if the restaurant is nearly empty. Makes for such an awkward atmosphere

LittleMissnotLittleMrs · 22/02/2022 21:11

Big problem for me. Noise sensitive especially to regular, repetitive sounds but need to wear aids. I just don’t go 😞

echt · 22/02/2022 21:35

Went to such a "gastro" pub in Melbourne and asked them to turn down the music as I had hearing impairment (I don't) and they said yes, and didn't. I asked again. They said they couldn't. What was amazing was their couldn't give fuck attitude.

MrPenguinsPoppers · 22/02/2022 21:57

Drives me bonkers.
I have a frequency hearing loss and tinnitus in my left ear so cant wear a hearing aid, the biggest issue is I cant separate sounds so if someone is chatting to me with music on as well I'll struggle to hear the person I'm speaking to. Restaurants seem to be getting worse for it now.

That said, I've noticed it creeping into other places too. The BBC news on the Alexa devices often has music accompanying the story, utterly pointless and it reaches a crescendo as the person is talking. It means I can only ever really hear half the story. Also, the new episodes of Bargain Hunt have started to do it at the auctions at the end. Again, music in the background loud enough to make speech comprehension nigh on impossible.

Bloody annoying.

Lottapianos · 22/02/2022 22:01

Does anyone actually enjoy having to scream at their dining partners over the noise of blaring music? I don't know why restaurants do this. It's bad enough in shops but hopefully you're in and out in a few minutes. 2 hours or more in a restaurant - I want to talk to whoever I'm with, not be deafened by music for the sake of 'atmosphere'

modgepodge · 22/02/2022 22:13

I went in to a TGIs at midday on Saturday with my husband and 2 year old. Upon entry there was one other table seated, also a family with under 3s. They had the music turned up like it was a bar on a Saturday night!! My daughter instantly started complaining and the waitress could barely hear us to take our order and looked quite relieved when I asked if it could be turned down. It was and it was fine. Why they thought families would want nightclub level music on a Sunday lunchtime I have no idea.

echt · 22/02/2022 22:16

This has inspired me to give a massive thumbs down review of that Melbourne pub. :o

TheBigPeach · 22/02/2022 22:23

My daughter has sensory processing disorder and can’t tolerate noise at all, we were out at a dinner last week and luckily I had my AirPods with me because the noise was just so much for her.

September29th · 22/02/2022 22:24

Pre-Covid we had a great local restaurant, well the menu was great. During the 4 or so years it was open I went there twice.

First, when it opened, assumed the music was just loud as it was new and busy and there were offers and a generally cheery atmosphere. It was too loud but the food was good. The chairs were torture though so didn't rush back, always meant to go but there were more comfortable places.

Eventually went again, it was unbearably loud, no chance of hearing anything over the din. People were yelling at each other over the music and then other people were yelling over them and the music was being turned up to hide the yelling...

Wasn't worth the ringing ears and aching arse.

gogohm · 22/02/2022 22:25

Depends on whether they are known for music - Hard Rock Cafe for instance I would assume has music. I do like some music especially when I'm alone of with just dp

wingscrow · 22/02/2022 22:31

I hate it.

If I want loud music I will go to a club...

If I go to a restaurant with friends I want to be able to have a nice conversation and hear what they are saying. Not have to scream through the whole meal.

Same with shops. I don't want to listen to their crap music.

I avoid any place that has a constant loud music playing. I think businesses should realise they are putting customers by doing this.

EssexLioness · 22/02/2022 22:43

I hate this too. I am autistic and have tinnitus so I only go to quieter venues/ avoid live music and busier times.

HotWaterAndLemon · 22/02/2022 22:46

YANBU.
Worst still when they seem to turn it up each hour so at the beginning you can hear each other comfortably and by the end you are yelling.
Just makes me want to leave.

SprigofSage · 22/02/2022 22:55

Aaah I've found my people. I hate loud music / poor acoustics in restaurants so, so much. I'm relatively young and cheerful but I just can't stand it. I always book in advance so I can request a quiet table away from any speakers!

ISaySteadyOn · 23/02/2022 07:41

The cynical view would have it that the music is loud to increase the rate of table turnover. If you cannot hear your companions and have conversations, you will leave faster thus freeing up the table for more customers.

the80sweregreat · 23/02/2022 15:27

We took ds1 out for a meal a few years ago
to cheer him up after a nasty break up with his g: friend.
We were placed next to a speaker and I felt like I was in a disco on a Saturday afternoon. We couldn't talk to him very well above the sound of loud music, it made him even more miserable. Couldn't wait to get outside for a bit of peace and quiet ( in a busy high street !)
I think it's only put on for the staff most of the time too, or a quick turnaround on the tables ( as mentioned already )

ArseInTheCoOpWindow · 23/02/2022 15:30

Apparently this is a ‘thing’. I hate it too.

I read an article about 18 months ago about how loud music in restaurants is driving people away.

ChaToilLeam · 23/02/2022 16:11

I don’t mind loud music in its place, but that place is a concert or a club. Not an restaurant where I’d like to talk to my dining companions. I can be a bit sensitive to loud noise and find it stressful.

GrumpyPanda · 23/02/2022 16:21

@Lottapianos

Does anyone actually enjoy having to scream at their dining partners over the noise of blaring music? I don't know why restaurants do this. It's bad enough in shops but hopefully you're in and out in a few minutes. 2 hours or more in a restaurant - I want to talk to whoever I'm with, not be deafened by music for the sake of 'atmosphere'
It's not about what you or even the majority of customers prefer. Statistically people consume more drinks in a noisier environment, so it's all about the restaurant's bottom line. Also, decorating fashion these days makes for bad acoustics anyway - for instance, no carpets or curtains. I'm afraid nothing will change unless people start actually walking out rather than complaining after the fact - I've done that on multiple occasions, even with reservations. Also, make sure to leave reviews.
BogRollBOGOF · 23/02/2022 16:33

Turning music down is the single Covid measure I'd keep and nothing to do with any efficacy in the public health department!

Many a group meal I've been bored and unable to join in with conversation because it's been drowned out by the "atmospheric" cacophany, and places often refuse to turn it down for some unfathomable reason.

If a place is quiet, a bit of background noise to stop feeling overheard by other people is understandable, but not when it inhibits conversation amongst a table or interacting with staff.

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