Feast your eyes! Looks delicious! That tastes as good as it looks! English is full of phrases that connect appearance to taste. However, scientists have been discovering that the connection between the two runs deeper than simple metaphors.

Central to this development is the fact that what we call taste involves more than just the neurological response from our taste buds receiving signals from particular chemicals. In fact, the perception of flavor relies on each of our other senses, including sight. So, a salad that is plated neatly will actually be perceived as tasting better than an untidy one, even if the salad size and ingredients are identical. This helps explain why it makes sense for elite restaurants to go to elaborate lengths to craft how their diners will see the food they serve. Taste, it turns out, is as much a matter of appearances as it is a matter of, well, taste.

But it isn’t just the appearance of the food itself that matters; the physical and social context matter too. A study found that a well-decorated, well-lit environment makes customers rate food higher on appearance, smell, and, most importantly, taste. One study, for example, served the same food in an army training camp, a college buffet, and a 4-star restaurant and found that the food in the restaurant tasted demonstrably better to participants in the study. Another study found that even the plates that food is served on can impact how we judge its quality.

Such studies are giving credence to what chefs have long insisted: that eating is not merely about sustenance but is a multi-sensory artistic experience. (271)

This Moment of Science comes from Indiana University, with production support from the Office of the Provost.

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I'm Yaël Ksander.