Mellow Mushroom is a hip national pizzeria chain attracting all age demographics. Known for their delicious food and fun and creative restaurant environment, the quality of their guests dining experience is of the utmost importance. As with most dining establishments, having the proper acoustical environment is necessary. When a Mellow Mushroom restaurant location was experiencing high reverberation times due to the high ceilings and hard reflective surfaces, they called upon Commercial Acoustics to analyze and design a solution.
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Commercial Acoustics tested each dining space, and determined the reverberation time was between 1.3 – 1.5 seconds. The optimal reverberation time for a lively restaurant is around 0.8 seconds, meaning a topical acoustical absorption treatment was required. The sound engineer determined the ideal amount of acoustical wall panels, which were beveled and manufactured with high-end acoustically-transparent fabric.
Two patterns of wall-mounted Acoustic Panels were used. Green fabric was placed on approximately 2/3rds of the panels, and installed high along the wall above the “transition” line in the dining room. Due to height limitations in the space, the east-west walls were installed horizontally, while the north-south walls were installed vertically. Several electrical conduits were installed around and drawn out, to prevent needing to break the wall pattern. In the inside dining space, a dark orange acoustic fabric was used to match the decor.
All acoustic panels were 2″ thick, with beveled edges to provide a depth along the wall. The clients preferred that they blend into the space, while also functioning to give some aesthetic treatment to the otherwise-flat walls.
After the acoustic treatment was complete, the reverberation test was re-run, displaying a 55% drop in the reverberation time on the outside enclosed patio. The restaurant owner was very pleased with the acoustics, noting that it was much easier to hear conversations, but was not “overly dead”. It should be noted that, when designing the acoustics of a restaurant, there is a fine line between over-designing the treatment versus leaving it too noisy. An Acoustic Consultant should design the acoustics with a range in mind that meets Acoustical Best Practices, and then allow the restaurant management to determine the exact treatment, based on the tradeoff between liveliness and intimacy, and the budget constraints.
