Aesthetic Appeal of Dishes and its Influence on the Acceptability and Price of Culinary Preparations

Abstract

When presenting food to consumers, utensils chosen for serving deserve attention since they can contribute to multisensory experiences of food. Besides, handling and dishing up with great care play an important role in consumers` perception of a meal. This study aimed to assess the influence of aesthetic appeal of desert dishes on consumer acceptance and pricing of the product. The same blackberry pie recipe was presented following a balanced order, but served in five different ways: disposable cups, glass cups, porcelain plates, disposable plates and finger food spoons. All deserts had a total standard serving weight of 35g of base, cream, and topping. Sensory tests were performed in two stages: 1st) samples were provided monadically for the consumer to assess his/her expectations on overall and sweetness likings using a 9-point hedonic scale without tasting the product; 2nd) samples were served the same way, but scores were registered after the consumer tasting. The contingent value technique was applied to investigate the price that the appraiser would be willing to pay for that sample in that size in that serving utensil. A total of 145 consumers participated in tests. Glass cups had the highest expectation and tasting scores for both sweetness and overall liking. All acceptance attributes were higher for the porcelain/glass utensils than for the disposable ones. For contingent value, there was a greater percentage of participants willing to pay for the highest value when deserts servings were aesthetic appealing with porcelain/glass utensils. In samples with disposable utensils, pricing was always below the lowest value. The aesthetic appearance of the product can help improve the acceptance of culinary preparations and their pricing.