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BBC World Service East and Southern Africa

The Food Chain

Factual: Food & Drink

Examining what it takes to put food on your plate

The Food Chain examines the business, science and cultural significance of food, and what it takes to put food on your plate.

How to read a menu

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The Food Chain: How to read a menu

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09/11/2023 GMT

BBC World Service - The Food Chain, How to read a menu

Restaurants use language, psychology and behavioural economics to influence your choice

Restaurants use language, psychology and behavioural economics to influence your choice.

Pan fried, artisanal, gourmet: there's a fashion for foodie words. Why?  

In this episode, Ruth Alexander finds out how restaurants use language, psychology and behavioural economics to whet your appetite and increase their profits. 

Linguist Dr Keri Matwick of Nanyang Technological University in Singapore explains the research that shows the longer the description of a dish, the more expensive on average it is. 

Chef Caroline Martins of Sampa at Blossom Street Social Wine Bar in Manchester, England talks about the mistakes she made when she first designed her menus. 

Sean Willard of Menu Engineers in California gives us an insight into the power of using a box on the menu.

And thanks to listener Simon in London who emailed thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk with the idea for the programme. Neither he nor we will look at a menu in the same way again.

Presented by Ruth Alexander.
Produced by Beatrice Pickup.

(Image: a woman holding a menu in front of her face. Credit: Getty Images/BBC)

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