Is the Fine Art of Dining Conversation Disappearing in Austin?

PBS talk host Charlie Rose recently keynoted at the National Restaurant Association convention in Chicago. And he said that “restaurants are a wonderful place for conversation.” Clearly, from what some of you have to say, he hasn’t dined much in Austin where we have a reputation for acoustic Armageddon, even in our finest dining restaurants.

I get this complaint about Austin dining from our readers on a regular basis. “It was so loud we couldn’t here ourselves talking.” “The noise level was distracting and disconcerting.” “Why can’t someone learn how to build a restaurant where the ears of the patrons are valued along with their palates?!” Ad infinitum, ad nauseum.

Here’s my take on it. Austin is a young, vibrant town. The median age is one of the lowest in the country. It is also a town where there is a fairly high level of discretionary spending on dining out. So you’re going to get a lot of yuppie diners in some of your favorite restaurants. And they tend to grow louder as the wine consumption increases. And it’s not just young, urban professionals. I have heard people my age (vanguard boomers) making lots of noise at some of my best-liked spots. So what to do? If you absolutely must have peace and quiet during your dinner, pick an expensive restaurant with a reputation for elegance and a lower noise level. The Driskill Grill, Trio, Aquarelle, Mansion at Judge’s Hill immediately come to mind. This is not to demean great places like Eddie V’s, The Roaring Fork, Perla’s, McCormick and Schmick’s, Uchi, III Forks, and Péché but you’re just not gong to get the level of quietude you seek there, or at most other places for that matter.

I love nothing better than a good dinner conversation. But I am also capable of picking a table where the noise level may be somewhat suppressed (in a corner perhaps) and I’m not averse to speaking up a bit if needs be. This is Austin, after all, not St. Petersburg. And as Coach Royal said, ‘you dance with who brung ya.” Places where you can hear a pin drop in Austin are far and few between. I have no real problem with that. It means we’re alive and breathing. Perhaps a trifle inconsiderate on occasion, but hey, most times you get over 80 diners in a room, there’s going to be noise, regardless of how well the place is insulated.