MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Some bars have a dress code. You can't smoke in others. But some are making cellphones off-limits. Nick de la Canal from member station WFAE takes us to one new spot in Charlotte, North Carolina.
NICK DE LA CANAL, BYLINE: From the outside, this new bar called Antagonist looks like any other cocktail spot. A host greets guests out front.
PHI HOANG: What's going on, guys? How are y'all?
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: Pretty good. How are you doing?
DE LA CANAL: But to get inside, you have to hand your phone to the host, who puts it in a pouch.
HOANG: So we'll lock your phones up in the back. If you guys need your phones at any point in time, you come out and see us. You can take your calls out here.
DE LA CANAL: The host, Phi Hoang, is also the bar's co-owner and says he's surprised with how little people push back.
HOANG: To be honest with you, most people are excited to give us their phones.
DE LA CANAL: Inside, leather banquettes line the room beneath big, fringed chandeliers. It's very Instagrammable, if only you could snap a pick. People sit at tables talking or playing board games provided by the bar. Some are chatting up the bartenders.
MIKE SALZARULO: I wanted to create a space where people could come, interact, be vulnerable, be nervous, but be human. You know what I mean?
DE LA CANAL: That's co-owner Mike Salzarulo. This bar is just the latest establishment to introduce a phone-free concept. In recent years, no-phone bars and restaurants have also opened in a handful of other cities, including New York and Washington, D.C.
ANNA LEMBKE: I mean, I think this is so interesting. And this is exactly what people are yearning for.
DE LA CANAL: Anna Lembke is a psychiatrist at Stanford University and author of "Dopamine Nation." She says phones have become an easy escape, especially in social settings.
LEMBKE: What teenagers talk a lot about is how whenever there's an awkward social moment, people just pull out their phones and pretend to be absorbed by something. And, you know, adults are, unfortunately, probably no different at this point.
DE LA CANAL: She says ignoring that impulse is hard. But it's easier when everyone in the room is doing the same.
RANDY YINGER: The no phones thing was actually a draw to come here.
DE LA CANAL: Randy Yinger (ph) is here with his girlfriend, Amanda Bozian (ph).
AMANDA BOZIAN: I'm enjoying the moment. I'm having conversations. I'm making eye contact. Like, I'm not worrying about a text or checking Instagram.
DE LA CANAL: At a nearby table is Lauren Bernard (ph). She's a social media manager by day, but tonight, she's notification-free.
LAUREN BERNARD: Honestly, it's fantastic. Life needs to be more like this.
DE LA CANAL: She's also trying to find a date for her friend, Rachel McGraw (ph), who says she's tired of guys flirting through social media.
RACHEL MCGRAW: Like, no, I actually don't want your Instagram. I don't want your Snapchat. (Laughter) Like, write your number on my arm. Let's make it old-school.
DE LA CANAL: Even if she doesn't find a date tonight, she will leave with an old-school souvenir. Before guests go, staff take their photo with a polaroid camera, a small, tangible memory from a night spent offline.
For NPR News, I'm Nick de la Canal in Charlotte.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "PHONE DOWN")
ERYKAH BADU: (Singing) I can make you put your phone down. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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