Are lulls in conversation bad signs for a relationship?

My boyfriend and I (both 22) have been dating for 1.5 years. He's great, and I really love him. After thinking about our relationship recently, however, it feels like we never have conversations. At school we see each other basically every day. So rather than talking, we do a lot of things together like watch a movie or cook (a lot of the times, his roommates are there). On dates, we usually just talk about the food we're eating rather than conversing about something else. I've tried to lead the conversation away from our food but usually it just falls flat.

Now we graduated and are at our respective homes (long distance). Our texts are usually like status updates about what we're up to, which is fine. But even our phone calls feel the same way. There are a lot of lulls in conversation and it doesn't sound like my boyfriend is actually listening to what I am saying. We talk for 15 minutes at a time. I used to talk for hours on the phone with other boyfriends so why does this seem different?

He's really important to me and I would hate to hear that this is a sign of a relationship that won't work. But what do you guys think? Honest opinions.