Restaurants Need to Put Acoustics On the Menu

06/30/2021

As restaurants reopen for business and the world rediscovers the joy of eating out, an age-old problem is making diners lose their appetite — noise.

According to 13,000 U.S. diners that voted in the annual Zagat survey of restaurant trends, noise was the biggest annoyance when eating out. Even more than poor service, crowds, or high prices. The main reason people go out to eat is to enjoy the company and conversation of friends and family, so if you can’t hear what’s being said, that takes away a lot of the pleasure.
 

Nightmare for the ears

How did we end up with such noisy restaurants? Contemporary trends toward exposed interiors and brick, concrete or marble as well as open kitchens have increased the volume, while soft sound-absorbing furnishings, like carpets, drapes and table linens, have all fallen out of fashion.

Some commentators have described this new generation of restaurant design as “a feast for the eyes but a nightmare for the ears.” Others have described the design trend as ageist, artificially contributing to a youthful buzz that discourages a noise-sensitive older clientele. The most skeptical (carrying decibel monitors with them) believe restaurants have turned up the noise to encourage faster turnover.

One thing is certain, a noisy restaurant contributes to what is known as the Lombard Effect—when people “unconsciously increase the loudness level of their speech in the presence of background noise in order to be understood.” In other words, noisy restaurants just get noisier. The process continues until decibel levels typically reach well over 80 dB. There’s even an app that finds the quietest restaurant in your neighborhood.
 

Designing for acoustics

Acoustics need to be factored into interiors from the start, but often restaurants only test and experience their acoustics on opening night.

Configuring tables close to constantly opening and closing restaurant front doors, busy bars or swinging kitchen doors are fundamental mistakes, as are sound-reflective surfaces such as marble floors or mirrored walls without consideration for sound absorbing materials.

Acoustic separation between restaurants and residential areas is regulated in most countries but the acoustic environment of restaurants is unregulated and at the architect’s discretion. If acoustics are not factored into the design, noises inside and outside the restaurant can easily become deafening.
 

Avoiding excess noise in restaurants

Restaurant designers face a difficult challenge: how to create buzz and ambience, while still letting people hear each other speak. The key to tackling excessive restaurant noise is by taking a holistic approach to acoustics. Keep these tips in mind:

• Separate seating areas for large, loud groups of more than eight from small intimate groups of two to four people.
• Don’t design seating areas near speakers, open kitchens, or kitchen machines like coffee grinders and blenders.
• Use fabrics and other soft furnishings wherever possible – it doesn’t have to be old-fashioned carpet, curtains and white tablecloths. There are plenty of retro and modern fabrics such as leather and hide, linen, silk, bamboo and rubber that can be used to create unique and trending looks.
• Spread and dampen the sound using alcoves and physical barriers that break up the path of the soundwaves and dissipate their energy.
• Use sound absorbing wall and wall linings and create sound absorbing feature walls that can also be turned into art.
• Impact sound through the use of rubber caps on chair legs and softer impact floor coverings on main walkways.
• Turn down the music.

Knauf Insulation offers sound control solutions that can be incorporated into every design aspect from wall and ceiling insulation, to technical solutions for ducts, pipes, heating or cooling systems.

Eating out is something to be enjoyed, not something to be endured. You want to remember a restaurant for giving you a positive experience, not giving you an earache.