Opinion: This US chef is onto something with his new restaurant’s cellphone ban

Obsessive smartphone use simulates connectivity to people, yet adults — and worse, teens — are more lonely and depressed than ever. — Mobile internet photo created by tirachardz - www.freepik.com

Smartphone use is ubiquitous — and why not? It’s convenient, useful, and connective: a phone, a computer, and a portal into a multi-verse of worlds like Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.

Still, one guy is standing athwart this trend by requiring patrons at his new Italian restaurant, Caterina, to confine their phones to the silence of a locked pouch. He might be onto something.