Forget mood lighting or fancy wine for your next dinner party, a recent study suggests that the right tablecloth can make your food taste much better, but is there any proof to this?
By: Ringo Bones
For as long as anyone can remember, a greater priority has been assigned to mood lighting and the right kind of fancy wine when it comes to the success or – hopefully not – failure of a fine dining event. But a recent study conducted by culinary experts had shown results that the right choice of tablecloth has the most bearing in making the food taste better and eliciting guest satisfaction at the end of the meal. The desired diner satisfaction even works with value-for-money (as in cheap) linen tablecloth.
In this recent study, culinary researchers fed more than 200 participants tomato soup under varying conditions. Dim lighting made the tomato soup taste saltier but had no impact on other taste ratings, appearance, odor, consistency, or perceived quality. The inclusion of a tablecloth was, however, a game changer. Participants ate more, thought the soup was better quality and sat at the table for longer. Maybe you can try this in your next major dining event – maybe this Valentine’s Day? – to check out of the right tablecloth is a fine dining game changer.
