Ask George: Is cell phone use in restaurants becoming a problem?

The question—which specified guests talking on speaker, FaceTiming, and watching videos—stemmed from a St. Louis restaurateur posting signs discouraging the use of speakers on phones.

Derek Deaver, owner of Three Kings Pubs (with locations in Des Peres, South County, and Terminal 2 of St. Louis Lambert International Airport), as well as Casa de Tres Reyes in Des Peres, posted a sign that reads:

“To ensure all our guests have the most enjoyable experience possible, we ask that you refrain from talking on speaker phone, FaceTiming, or watching videos without headphones. We apologize if this poses an inconvenience, but we all need to respect each other.”

Deaver adds, “Since [the pandemic], people have become so self-absorbed, floating through public spaces in their own little bubbles. They forget there are other people around them who don’t want to hear their conversation or listen to their videos. It’s become its own epidemic! Whether in the grocery store line, on an airplane, or in a restaurant, respect the people around you.”

I’ve had similar experiences, most recently in grocery store aisles (conversations beyond asking what brand of peanut butter to buy) and checkout lines (ugh!), but the worst was in a doctor’s office waiting room, when one person began talking on speaker, then another, then a third. Three of the five people in the room were conducting separate conversations, oblivious to those around them. After attempting WTF? eye contact with all three, I ended up where they should have been: in the hallway.

We asked other local restaurateurs to weigh in:

Mark Hinkle, OO Hospitality Group: “We’ve always set out to avoid, as much as possible, setting rules and restrictions for our guests, so I don’t see any policies like this going into place in our restaurants. It tends to be less noticeable in more convivial concepts, but I believe we’d address one on one with a guest if we felt their ‘cell phone etiquette’ was negatively impacting other guests’ experiences.”

Natasha Kwan, Frida’s/Bonito Bar, Diego’s Cantina, Station No. 3: “This is one of the biggest pet peeves I have with guests. It is absolutely rude and entitled for someone to think they can do this, but that is the world we live in now. We have not banned it but have told guests that it is disturbing to the other guests’ experience. Years ago, this angered someone so much that I received multiple phone threats that family members were going to come in and beat me up. It’s bad enough that you see people at dinner, especially dates, not even interacting with one another. Some even complain—online, of course—that their experience was mediocre, or they had to wait too long, because they are safe to write whatever on their reviews. Leave the digital fentanyl in your pocket or purse, and be present, please, or use AirPods.”

Nick Bognar, indo, Sado, Pavilion: “Crazy enough we haven’t had to tell anyone to turn off their speaker phone or video call off yet. Maybe people just know we would…and to be clear, we ABSOLUTELY would tell them to turn it off. We won’t ruin another guest’s experience just to avoid one inconsiderate person. To me it really just is inconsiderate to others. Just step outside. Not hard.”   

Frank Romano, Madrina, The Parkmoor Drive-In: “At Madrina, people are pretty well-behaved with cellphones and usually will walk away from the table for a call. We see a lot of Instagram photos, though—you can’t get mad about that. At The Parkmoor, there’s a ton of phone and iPad use, especially with children. For the most part, parents keep the kids under control (low volume and headphones), but for tables that are a little loud, we get their food to them ASAP, which usually stops video playback.”

Steve Gontram, 5 Star Burgers, No Ordinary Rabbit: “You would not believe the single diners who come in and sit with their cell phones on speakers, listening to a phone call or a video. It’s as if they’re the only person left on the planet. What happened to ear buds?”

Jamie Komorek, Trattoria Marcella, Marcella’s Mia Sorella: “While phone use is out of control everywhere—and we do have plenty of people sharing pics, taking selfies, texting etc.—FaceTiming and speaker conversations have not been an issue. But I must confess that it drives me nuts when I am somewhere and see or hear it.”

Jim Fiala, The Crossing, Acero: “We’ve have had only a few instances where it was uncomfortable and only at lunch for a couple minutes. Fortunately, we have not had anything worse beyond that. If it continued, we would approach and ask the guest to please turn off the speaker.”

Bernie Lee, akar: “Luckily, at akar, we don’t have that problem, but if it happened, I will politely ask guests not to continue do so. The dining room is considered a public space where respect of all others is required.”

Brant Baldanza, OG Hospitality Group: “It’s our lucky day that we have not had this problem…yet.  I’m heading over to buy a Powerball ticket right now.”