Restaurant Music

There is going to be a forced standardization of what, and how loud, restaurants play through their speakers. After dozens of complaints from customers, especially middle-aged Thai men with younger female companions, restaurants all over Bangkok have petitioned the government to do something to standardize the volume and quality of music. Some eateries have been blatantly ignoring the traditional acoustic entertainment etiquette by either playing Western music, music at a tonally recognizable volume, or both.

Somchai Watthanathibet, an influential member of the Bangkok government, has insisted that all restaurants immediately standardize their entertainment. He said ‘it is unacceptable for customers to go out for dinner and not know what to expect in terms of their listening material for the evening. Some restaurants think they can attract clientele by luring them with soft and romantic tunes, but that is not fair for traditional Thai and Chinese families who expect to have to shout if they want to hear each other.’ He also added, ‘there are a lot of personal, financial and confidential conversations at dinner tables that are better not heard by members of other tables, or people of the same group but sitting several seats away.’

The assistant governor of Bangkok has hinted that there must be some kind of standardization to make it fair for all restaurants. If two restaurants in an area have different music volumes but similar menus and prices, the customers will easily be confused as to why. He added that instead of infinitely-adjustable volume knobs, the amplifiers should just have a switch, and that there will be a further crackdown on manufacturers who try to market better quality speakers in order for the words of the songs to be heard.

On a similar note, the car park staff who help incompetent drivers to drive in to and out of large and well-lit parking spaces face further guidelines. There has been a succession of insurance claims by drivers, many of whom are aged between 15 and 18 or have recently been bought a new Japanese saloon, claiming that the whistling by guards to help them park is not consistent from one venue to another. Several important members of society have had to actually insist on the guards driving or reversing the vehicles into or out of parking spaces, and their dirty uniforms and the smell of their unwashed hair affects the journey home for teenage girls who need to concentrate on driving while chatting on their iphones or BBs.