Location, Location, Location

[Haylley Johnson]

Laying in bed last night, I was contemplating my favorite restaurants — just general foodie daydreaming. I realized, however, that I kept coming back to the meal's setting. Of course the meal was at the forefront of my thoughts, but restaurants' interior design, music, and aura kept popping up as significantly redeeming qualities. Sometimes I even came to the conclusion that, in some instances, a restaurant on my list of favorites was there purely because of the setting. Does anyone think that the venue has a substantial impact on how you perceive the food you eat? Does anyone else think location is truly central to how much you enjoy a meal?

[Undead Molly]

I would say yes, wholeheartedly! I feel like I notice a lot about my restaurant surroundings, not just the food. One big thing that can make me yea or nay a restaurant is acoustics. It doesn't seem to bother some people at all, but I do not enjoy a meal if I have to really concentrate and strain to hear my companions, and feel like I'm yelling in order to be heard myself. The problems I find are loud music, poorly placed speakers, and no sound buffering in small spaces. I wonder why it bothers some people but not others? My dad has the same complaint as I do, but he's hard of hearing and my hearing is actually a little better than average, so it covers a broad spectrum.

All the more subtle details contribute as well, of course. Like,

Lighting
Good: ambient, warm, diffuse, medium/low brightness
Bad: harsh, cool, bright, overhead

Decoration
Good: simple, uncluttered, harmonious but not totally matchy-matchy, exhibits unique character, no stark white anywhere unless it's the linens
Bad: fake plants, that dentist's office waiting room look with medium/pale blues and mauves everywhere and boring "art" posters in shiny faux gold frames

Servers
Good: clean clothing with everyone in a similar color scheme (black top and pants look nice) and clean waist aprons.
Bad: overtly slutty outfits on women, head to toe identical uniforms (maybe it's just me but I think uniforms look absurd and degrading, like management is trying to partially remove the servers' identities), visibly dirty/stained clothing or apron

Cutlery and dinnerware
Good: 4 tined salad and dinner forks, well balanced cutlery, white or black dishes with little or no embellishment, clear drinking glasses so I can see if they're clean and see what I'm drinking
Bad: 3 tined salad/dinner forks, cutlery with excessively heavy handles, colored/decorative plates that distract from the food

Blah, blah, blah. But it also depends on my expectations. I love diners and inexpensive little Vietnamese places and I don't expect them to adhere to these standards, only finer dining venues.

[Haylley Johnson]

I'm glad I'm not alone, and I've been pondering your question about why music bothers some people and not others.

I think some of it might have to do with an individual's musical ear. I know that I had a boyfriend who used to constantly be adjusting his speaker system to try to eliminate some sort of humming or buzzing that he could hear underneath the song we were listening to or the movie we were watching. I, personally, could never hear what he was trying to fix.

Maybe restaurant music is a similar thing? It is background noise (like the my boyfriend's non-existent buzzing) that distracts you from everything else you are trying to do, like eating, talking, etc. It might even be the reverse - people might want focus on the music, but they can't because of the mealtime conversation. Some people might be able to tune out some of the noise layers. 

I'm honestly not sure if I am completely off base, but it is a potentially theory.