Righto, that’s me signing off until Monday but, before I go and stretch my waistband, here’s a couple of curios which have nothing to do with Christmas.
First up is the question of restaurant psychology. When you order in a restaurant, you decide what you are going to eat, don’t you? Well, not according to this article in The Independent which seems to reckon that restaurateurs have the kind of mind powers that Derren Brown would envy. The article is based on a book called Priceless: The Myth of Fair Value (and How to Take Advantage of It) by the American author William Poundstone.
The gist of the article is that by careful menu presentation and canny pricing, restaurateurs can manipulate customers into choosing the menu items that deliver most profit. Some of it, such as offering three different portion sizes to increase sales of the middle sized choice, makes sense. Some of the other theories seem to assume that customers close down their brains when they open a menu. If this tickles your interest then there is more here courtesy of the National Restaurant Association of America. Beware, it contains phrases such as ‘continuum of appeal’ which sounds as though it may be a Dr Who episode.
On a more light-hearted note, fancy some snail caviar?
I’ll see you on the other side. Have a great Christmas.