Restaurants and bars are increasingly adopting measures to discourage or ban the use of mobile phones by customers. These initiatives aim to encourage conversation and focus on the dining experience.
Methods vary, from placing stickers over phone camera lenses at London's Spy Bar to requiring phones to be placed in locked pouches at Antagonist in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Trophy Room in Phoenix, Arizona, stores guests' phones in a vintage filing cabinet.
Some establishments are using incentives rather than strict bans. Al Condominio in Verona, Italy, offers a free bottle of wine to customers who surrender their phones before their meal, a challenge reportedly accepted by 90% of customers.
Major chains are also beginning to implement policies. Pizza Express introduced phone-free afternoons last summer, and Wetherspoons encourages customers to keep their phones on silent.