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“Thisbookoffersinsightsintoallthewonderfulsensoryelementsthatmakeupourmem-
oriesofadiningexperience.Forthelasttwodecadestheculinaryworldhasbeenobsessed
withmodernistcookingandtherolesciencecanplayinthekitchen.Nowadaysmoreand
morechefsarerealisingthatsciencealsohasaplaceatthetable;thatadiningexperience
is made up of far more than just good food and that by understanding how we use our
sensestointeractwithandappreciatefoodwemaybeabletofurtherenhanceourguest’s
diningexperience.Thisbooklooksatmanytopicswhichwillbecomeincreasinglyrelevant
tobothchefsandsocietyasawholeinthecomingyears.”
JozefYouseff,chefandauthorofMolecularGastronomyatHome
(www.kitchen-theory.com)
“WhetheryourideaofagoodnightisthelocalcaféorthelatestMichelin-starredrestau-
rant,itisunlikelythatyou’llbeunawareoftheculturalphenomenonthatrestaurantfood
hasbecomeinrecentyears.Thesecretsofchefs – amateurandcelebrity – havebeenlaid
bareinmyriadweightybooksandglossyTVprogrammes.ThePerfectMealgoesbeyond
theexoticingredientsandcreativeinsightsofthechefandintotherealmofthediner’spsy-
chology.Usinganaccessiblewritingstylethatneithertalksdowntothereadernordumbs
downthescience,theauthorstakeusintotherelativelyunexploredworldofthedining
context:thegastrophysicsofthevisual,acoustic,tactile–nottomentiontasteandsmell–
influencesthatweareexposedtoineverydiningexperience.Thisisanewapproachto
thinkingaboutdiningthatwillappealtoandinformanyonewhohaseverbeenconvinced
tobuyacookbookbyitsillustrationsorwhopersists,despitefailure,intryingtomakea
reservationatTheFatDuck.”
JohnPrescott,Ph.D,authorofTasteMatters:WhyWeEattheFoodsWeDo
“Instrivingforahypotheticallevelofdeliciousperfectionweareforcedtolookbeyond
culinarytechniqueandingredients.Focussingonthebrain’sinterpretationofoureating
experience, pioneers Spence and Piqueras-Fiszman acknowledge the interdisciplinary
natureofgastronomy,renderingacomplexareaofstudybothdigestibleandapplicable.
This valuable input furthers the development of co-evolving disciplines; the scientific
studyofourbrains,andtherelentlesscreativity,experimentationandintuitionsoimportant
inproducingatrulygreatmeal.”
Ben Reade, Gastronome and Head of Culinary Research and Development at Nordic
FoodLab
“Notmanypeopleareasreadytorealisetheimportanceofthesenses,notonlyincooking
butineating,asCharlesSpenceandBetinaPiqueras-Fiszman.‘Thesensesasthestarting
pointforcreating’wasoneofthemostimportantcreativemethodsofelBulliandoneof
thepillarsofourcooking.
This book demonstrates beyond doubt that gastronomy is the most complex creative
disciplinethatexists.Therefore,Iinviteyoutoenjoythesecretsofthefascinatingworld
ofthesensesfromCharles’andBetina’shand,somethingwhichisfundamentaltoenjoy
gastronomy.”
FerranAdrià,elBullifoundation
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The Perfect Meal
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The Perfect Meal
The Multisensory Science of Food and Dining
Charles Spence
Oxford University, UK
Betina Piqueras-Fiszman
Wageningen UR, Netherlands
Spence ffirs.tex V2-06/18/2014 3:46P.M. Pagevi
Thiseditionfirstpublished2014©2014byJohnWiley&Sons,Ltd
Registeredoffice:JohnWiley&Sons,Ltd,TheAtrium,SouthernGate,Chichester,WestSussex,
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Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,storedinaretrievalsystem,or
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LimitofLiability/DisclaimerofWarranty:Whilethepublisherandauthor(s)haveusedtheirbest
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LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Spence,Charles.
Theperfectmeal:themultisensoryscienceoffoodanddining/CharlesSpence,Betina
Piqueras-Fiszman.
pagescm
Includesindex.
ISBN978-1-118-49082-2(paperback)
1.Gastronomy.2.Dinnersanddining.3.Food–Sensoryevaluation.4.Sensesandsensation.
5.Intersensoryeffects.I.Piqueras-Fiszman,Betina.II.Title.
TX631.S682014
641.01′3–dc23
2014013901
AcataloguerecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
Wileyalsopublishesitsbooksinavarietyofelectronicformats.Somecontentthatappearsinprint
maynotbeavailableinelectronicbooks.
Coverimage:CourtesyofBetinaPiqueras-Fiszman
Coverdesignbywww.hisandhersdesign.co.uk
Setin10.5/12.5pt,TimesTenLTStdbyLaserwordsPrivateLimited,Chennai,India
1 2014
Spence Sample.tex V3-06/18/2014 3:47P.M. Pagevii
Contents
Foreword xiii
Preface xvii
1 Introducing the Perfect Meal 1
1.1 Introduction 1
1.2 Abriefhistoryofculinarymovements 2
1.2.1 NouvelleCuisine 2
1.2.2 Theriseofmoleculargastronomy 3
1.2.3 Moleculargastronomyormodernistcuisine? 5
1.2.4 Ontheriseofthecelebritychef 7
1.3 Thesearchfornoveltyandsurprise 8
1.3.1 Thetasteofexpectation 10
1.3.2 Foodastheatre:themultisensoryexperienceeconomy
meetscuisine 11
1.4 Thebrainonflavour 12
1.4.1 Neurogastronomy 12
1.4.2 Doneurogastronomistsmakegreat-tastingfood? 14
1.5 Foodandtheperceptionofeverythingelse 16
1.6 Gastrophysics:thenewscienceofthetable 18
1.7 Foodperceptionisfundamentallymultisensory 21
1.8 Isn’tmodernistcuisineonlyfortheluckyfew? 22
1.9 Amusebouche 25
References 27
2 Let the Show Commence: On the Start of the Perfect Meal 37
2.1 Introduction 37
2.1.1 Moodfood 38
2.2 Onthesocialaspectsofdining 42
2.2.1 Waitingstaff 42
2.2.2 Thecompany 44
2.3 Onthedesignofthemenu 47
2.3.1 Scanningthemenu:‘Oysters,steakfrites,fieldgreens,oysters…’ 48
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viii CONTENTS
2.3.2 ‘Thisdessertisliterallycallingme’ 50
2.3.3 Imagesonthemenu 52
2.3.4 Onadiet?Doesnutritionalinformationhelp? 54
2.3.5 Priceandbehaviour 55
2.3.6 Ontheformatofthemenu 59
2.4 Conclusions 62
References 62
3 Tastes Great, But What do We Call It? The Art and Science
of Food Description 71
3.1 Introduction 71
3.2 Snailporridge 73
3.3 Canlabellingenhancethetasteand/orflavouroffood? 77
3.4 Interimsummary 81
3.5 Ontheneuroscienceofnamingfood 81
3.6 Namingnames 84
3.7 Doesfoodlabellinginfluencetheperceivedethnicityofadish? 85
3.8 Naturalandorganiclabels 87
3.9 Health/ingredientlabels 88
3.10 Locallabels 90
3.11 Descriptivefoodlabelling 91
3.12 Labellingculinarytechniques 92
3.13 Surprise! 95
3.14 Expectationsandreactions 96
3.15 Conclusions 98
References 100
4 Plating and Plateware: On the Multisensory Presentation
of Food 109
4.1 Introduction 109
4.2 Apottedhistoryoffoodpresentation 111
4.3 Theplate:theessentialelementofoureverydaymeal 115
4.3.1 Onthecolouroftheplate 115
4.3.2 Theshapeoftheplate 119
4.3.3 Thesizeoftheplate 121
4.3.4 Onthehapticaspectsoftheplateware 122
4.4 Interimsummary 128
4.5 Theplatethatisnotaplate 128
4.5.1 Reachingnewheights 129
4.5.2 Onthesmellandsoundoftheplateware 130
4.5.3 Camouflage 132
4.5.4 Improvisedplateware 133
4.5.5 Purpose-madeplateware 134
4.6 Onthemultiplecontributionsofthevisualappearanceofadish 135
4.6.1 Ontheimportanceofharmonyontheplate 136
