Noise While We Nosh?

Gather a friend or two for good food and lively conversation and it doesn't really matter what or where we eat. The chat's the thing.

But lately it seems that the decibel level in restaurants has been seriously cranked up. Ah, you say. Noise -- the chief complaint of a budding geezer. There may be some truth to that, but I think others will agree that we shouldn't need a bull horn to converse across the dining table.

I enjoy a lively atmosphere. If it's quiet I want, I'll take a sandwich to the library. But a cafe shouldn't sound like game seven of the World Series either.

You don't need Webster to figure out that background music is, well, in the background. Background music in a restaurant is not the same as background music on the assembly line at General Motors. My recent server delivered the litany of specials that could have been franks and beans for all I heard.

I'm also big on ambiance. When I eat Hawaiian I expect to hear a freakin' ukulele -- yes, in the background. I'd like a side of mariachi with my burrito, por favor. A little oom-pah-pah with my sauerkraut.

Shouting over the din to table mates has become the norm. And it's really put a damper on my eavesdropping. Now I'll never know the back story of the couple at the next table.