In this mini episode, Mike and Maeve dig into a surprising finding from Menu Matters’ sensory research: 52% of people say they would give up their sense of sound entirely if it improved their other four senses. People clearly love sound at the table, with sizzling fajitas topping the list of sensory experiences they want most. Yet most diners also rate restaurants a 7 out of 10 for noise, and say their ideal restaurant would sound like relaxing classical music.
Mike and Maeve unpack what that tension means for the industry. They cover why quiet has become a luxury, why younger diners raised during the pandemic may be more overwhelmed by noise than we assume, and how alarm-heavy kitchen technology wears on back-of-house staff. They also talk about how operators can design sound on purpose instead of by default. Along the way: a remarkably quiet open kitchen in Saratoga, a no-cell-phone coffee shop policy, and a wide-open opportunity for the first restaurant brand that markets itself on calm.
