App offers Australian diners solution to restaurant background noise

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An Australian app is setting out to help diners tired of battling background noise when they visit restaurants. The app allows users to search and review restaurants based on noise levels. Open-plan kitchens and sparse furnishing are the modern hallmarks of a trendy restaurant. However, some restauranteurs fail to consider the auditory implications of these design features. Diners tired of shouting across their starters now have a solution to the problem of overwhelming background noise. Audiologist Laura Drexler has designed “Ambient Menu,” an app that helps match restaurant-goers with venues that meet their hearing needs. Realizing that some potential restaurant-goers had stopped eating out altogether because of their sensitivity to noise, Drexler created an app that allows people to find and rate restaurants based on their auditory needs and preferences. “There are so many benefits of dining with other people, we get, you know, that endorphin rush, we get to engage, we get to be, you know, social human beings,” says Drexler. According to Drexler, research shows that too much noise in the background of a dining experience pushes customers to eat faster and to drink more alcohol. And it also changes our sense of taste in a negative way. “Once the background noise level gets to a certain level, your sympathetic nervous system kicks in, you have an increased heart rate, increased adrenaline, increased respiratory rate,” says Drexler. Stephen Morris, a retiree from Adelaide, says background noise has often had a negative impact on his dining experiences. “There’s been times I’ve actually felt I’m being attacked by the noise, which, it’s not a nice feeling,” explains Morris. “Regardless of what age you are, it would be nice to go out for a meal and not have to shout at each other to have a conversation.” Drexler is now hoping to be able to develop a smartphone version of her app and then hopes to offer the service across Australia next year. This article was provided by The Associated Press.