Colours determine our everyday life, influence our mood or affect our feelings. But what effect do they have on our sense of taste?
Ambiente – taking place from 26 Jan to 30 Jan 2024 – will play host to celebrity chef Jozef Youssef who will present the findings of an exclusive survey conducted for the trade fair. On Hoteliers’ Day, he will share his findings with industry participants and invite them to a get-together with a finger food menu.
Studies show that even the colours of the food can have a strong influence on the perceived taste of a dish. But does this effect also apply to the colour of the tableware? Jozef Youssef, the award-winning celebrity chef and creative force behind the design studio Kitchen Theory, conducted a survey exclusively for Ambiente, entitled “The power of colour: a survey on how coloured tableware influences the perception of food”. Using an online survey, he shines a light on how the colour of plates affects the perception of desserts.
The celebrity chef selected three desserts that are familiar and recognisable in different cultures: Granola with fruit and yoghurt, fruit salad with ice cream and a slice of chocolate tart with ice cream. For the colourful plates he used products from exhibitors. Youssef carefully prepared the dishes, arranged them attractively on the brightly coloured plates and photographed them. Participants from four continents were recruited for the online survey using a crowdsourcing tool. Based on the photos of the desserts, they rated the colourful plates for each dish according to appetite, health and sweetness.
The celebrity chef and his team are now analysing the responses from several hundred international respondents. Jozef Youssef will present the extent to which the coloured plates stimulate the appetite, influence the healthiness of the food and the perception of sweetness on Hotelier’s Day at Ambiente. At the HoReCa Academy, he invites industry participants to the following get-together with a specially designed finger food menu.
“Multi-sensory experiences play a major role. It’s not just about flavour, but about being surprised and experiencing with all your senses. We are delighted that Jozef Youssef is our guest at Ambiente for the second time and is conducting an exclusive survey on a current hospitality topic. We are very much looking forward to the results,” says Thomas Kastl, Director Ambiente Dining.
https://ambiente.messefrankfurt.com/