On Outdoor Music at Key Biscayne Restaurants

I was reading the Islander this week and there was a lofty discussion in the letters section about music at restaurants. Under the current noise ordinance it seems restaurants are not allowed to play music outdoors, but businesses are trying to change that. I don’t know the full details because I don’t actually have the paper in front of me, but this is the internet so I do have an opinion based on little factual knowledge.

Reading the outcry in the paper, half the letters wanted to preserve peace and quiet and felt outdoor music at restaurants would spill into some larger problem for noise on the key, and the other half felt restaurants should be allowed to play some music and promote a more lively ambiance. While reading it I wondered what the age of the people responding was.

Me, I’m relatively young and I seldom leave the key, so a little ambiance doesn’t sound too bad. More odd to me is that this issue could even garner so much attention. Set a moderate decibel level for max volume, and let the market decide. If your restaurant plays annoying music, people will be less inclined to go. If your restaurant plays music too loud, less people will go. If your restaurant doesn’t play music, well then you’ll bring in the peace and quiet crowd.

At the same time, this only applies to outdoor music. I eat at restaurants on the key all the time, and I’d say most don’t even have indoor music. Also, if you’ve been to the Square, they play an instrumental oldies mix all the time outside; I’ve never heard any complaints about that.

I guess in the end my opinion is that outdoor music won’t do anything at all. It’s not going to make the key noisier, and it’s not really going to give any place much more ambiance.

Your thoughts?

September 21st, 2010 | share