Do you prefer restaurants with TVs on the walls?

I don’t like them—I do find them distracting. I suppose that if the venue is truly a sports bar, intended to attract a certain crowd, that’s one thing. But a restaurant where the conversation, social intercourse and cuisine are the focus should not have a television.

I do not eat at restaurants with televisions.

I hate having TV’s in restaurants. I, too, want to go to a restaurant to visit and talk with friends, not watch TV. It’s distracting to me and my table mates.

I do not go to restaurants to watch television, they are a distraction from the company I am with & the conversation going on.

I don’t go to a restaurant to watch TV. I go there to enjoy the food, atmosphere and company.

I can see how they need them at sports bars .. but I don’t know why they need them in restaurants in general. We can all watch TV at home…

I would steer clear of a restaurant with TV’s .. only a distraction to me.

I go out to eat a nice meal not watch more TV plus the restaurants we frequent do not have TV’s and if they do they might have one in the bar area.

I recently went to an Appleby’s and they had distracting TVs all over the place. Right now I am sitting in a Mall food court (I am between business meetings). There are TVs blaring yet only few people watching. There is one table of elderly Mall walkers heads tilted back , mouths open looking at Fox News. Why are we wasting all this electrical energy producing noise pollution? I’d prefer Musak.

No

I don’t like them. Plus, most restaurants with televisions have bad food.

It doesn’t make a difference to me. Usually I can’t hear them and they’re playing nothing of interest to me, so I ignore them, as do the people I am with.

It doesn’t bother me as long as I’m not seated directly under one.

Not a fan – no.

I prefer to chat with who I’m with or read if I’m alone – but always to enjoy the food.

I really dislike them because going out to a restaurant is a social thing for me. If everyone is glued to tvs then we may have well just stayed at home.

I’ve been out for dinner with my hubby and he hardly says a word to me because he’s watching tv. He knows, now, that this drives me crazy and he makes an effort to not watch.

We try to avoid restaurants that have tvs.

They’re useless, it’s not like anyone can hear them anyway. Better yet, it’s not like they have interesting channels to watch.

They are okay in Pubs for watching football games (real football, not handegg), but in actual restaurants, they are a no-no.

This actually is a very good question. Although I do not consider Tennessee to be a redneck state, we do have tv’s in restaurants and so does Kentucky.

I agree, that the tv’s are distracting and are like magnets on the wall. We are a society of television nuts and so the attraction.

I am like you, I want to eat in peace or chat with my wife or whomever I am with and not be controlled by ABC, CBS, or NBC or any HD show.

While we are at it, what about televisions in the bathroom? It takes my mind off my business and I find myself watching the weather channel, rather than taking a whiz.

You are not alone.

@john65pennington: The barber shop I go to has a 50” television in their little 8’ bathroom. Right across from the toilet. It’s very unsettling.

Outside of bars, I’ve only seen it in sushi restaurants. Is this a thing now?

Strange… The replies are overwhelmingly negative. There are a couple of “meh” but no one said they prefer it.
So, why do restaurants spend the money on these distractions rather than on good food and service? Hmmm…

@dappled_leaves This weekend I spent a painful hour at an Appleby’s with TVs everywhere I looked. And today I was in a food court with several large TVs each trying to overpower the other.
“Magicaly” the one nearest to me had no sound. It was either a miracle or it must have been broken. ;-)

Well… consider the clientele for those kinds of establishments. Mostly families with kids to distract. Or at least that would be their justification, I suspect.

Eh, no way. They’re distracting, and when I go to a restaurant, I either go alone to enjoy the food, or I go with people, to enjoy the food, and the company I find myself with. If I want to eat while watching the tube, I’ll do just that at home, which is a way better place to watch TV anyways.

I especially hate TV in a restaurant if the sound is may up. OOooof !

TVs are only appropriate in sports bars where people are gathering to watch a game. I don’t like having a TV in a restaurant, especially when I am out on a date. It is a distraction and takes away from the romantic ambiance.

@StaceyD That is exactly how I feel. May your next date be quietly romantic.