A picture-perfect plate: plating as key to restaurant success

Learn how to effectively build these connections in your restaurant. 

What is plating and what are its powers?

Oxford professor Charles Spence, who gives lectures on the art of plating, conducted a study that confirmed that the same dish served in different ways will be perceived differently. The experiment showed that a salad served in an artistic and unconventional way garnered 30% more positive taste reviews than the other versions, despite all of them having the same ingredients. In addition, the subjects declared that they would be willing to pay three times more for a beautifully served dish than for a less attractive version.   

However, it is not only about increasing profits. Good plating is as much a part of a restaurant's image as the interior, service, or menu. It shows the chefs' passion, encourages guests to further explore the offer, and builds a social media presence that provides free advertising and a steady flow of new guests, while encouraging the regular ones to return.

A beautiful plate comes in many flavors

Balance is the most important element of plating, so decoration must not overshadow the taste of the dish. It should be harmoniously complemented in terms of texture, taste, or aroma. It also has to stimulate senses other than taste, such as sight and smell. 

Here are a few examples of products that can be used for plating:

• Sauces – a versatile two-in-one: it tastes great while being decorative. They can have their own flavor or accentuate parts of a dish. Sauces can be presented in a variety of ways: spilled, smeared, or dispensed in dots or zigzags. Using the same sauce, different designs can be created.
• Vegetable chips – not just potatoes, but also carrots, beets or kale; they are a colorful and texturally interesting garnish, giving a delicately roasted flavor. Above all, they are the perfect way to use seasonal vegetables.
• Infused oil – another versatile item; after all, oil or can be infused with virtually anything from herbs to wooden flakes (to give it a smoky flavor). A very popular solution in fine dining as well, it adds an elegant, colorful touch to dishes while providing interesting flavor notes.
• Powder – made from vegetables, fruits, herbs, or mushrooms, can be used for main dishes and desserts. Because it is made by drying and finely grinding products and then being used in small amounts, powders are used primarily for decorative purposes. They are also more difficult to prepare compared to previous suggestions, since their ingredients need to be not only completely dried, but also very finely ground. However, powders can be a source of delicate flavor, especially those made from mushrooms or herbs. They do not adversely affect the taste of the dish, even if they are prepared with sour or bitter ingredients.
• Foam – beautifully breaks up the flavor of a dish or adds delicacy to it; it can also be used to sneak in some interesting flavor accents. It adds variety to a dish by giving it an intriguing texture and often provides visual balance. It can be made with dairy, such as goat cheese, citrus, or something more extreme, such as wasabi.

Decorating? Start from the bottom

Professional plating starts with plate selection. There are many options, so you need to consider which shape and color will best suit the dish. The most common shape is the classic round plate, due to its versatility and freedom of arrangement. Square or rectangular plates will be a better choice for Asian or fusion dishes.

The color of the plate is of great importance as well. Colorful plates can be a real icing on the cake, completing the “wow” effect. Shades of green are associated with health and nature, so they go best with dishes with many vegetables or plant-based products. They will work especially well in restaurants with plant-based or organic food. Pink plates, on the other hand, are associated with desserts, so they will work best to enhance guests' experience in this area.

However, with some colors, be careful. For example, it is believed that the color blue, which is rarely found in nature, reduces appetite because we do not associate it with food. Instead, it is highly recommended as a color for glassware, as it enhances the feeling of thirst and refreshment.

The know-how of plating: a few basic tips

Once we have chosen the plate, we can focus on the arrangement itself. Here are some rules to follow to guarantee an aesthetically pleasing dish:

• Moderation - the arrangement together with the dish should not take up the entire plate. The trick is to maintain balance between aesthetics and portion size.
• Contrast - if you opt for a white plate, including colorful elements in the arrangement becomes crucial to create an eye-catching contrast. It is important to avoid artificial colors and instead choose naturally colored ingredients, such as matcha, turmeric, beets, or even powdered sugar.
• Simplicity - if you are unsure of the desired end result, the safest solution is, as always, simplicity. It is better to create a minimalist composition than to overcrowd the plate, scaring off the guest.
• Freshness - the culmination of any composition is fresh ingredients. Even the most creative ideas fade when the ingredients are not fresh. However, even those ingredients that are no longer fresh enough to be used for decoration can be made into side dishes, in the spirit of zero waste.

Where do you learn the art of plate arrangement?

The mastery of plating is an art that cannot be taught in one school. However, there are several main techniques from which to draw inspiration:

• Classical plating - the method most recommended for beginners and casual dining restaurants, based on arranging the elements of a dish clockwise: vegetables from “12” to “3”, protein source (usually meat) from “3” to “9” and carbohydrates, such as potatoes or rice, from “9” to “12”
• Landscape plating - nature-inspired design; plates usually resemble colorful gardens or orchards; this is where you can usually expect to see the use of edible flowers and lots of leaves.
• Free form plating - a favorite of really creative chefs, its only rule is that there are no rules. Very contemporary and abstract, which calls for unconventional ingredients.
• Nordic plating - minimalist in both decoration and portion size, focuses on reducing a dish to its simplest, wildest form. 
• Geometric plating - very satisfying to the eye, where the dish takes the form of a picture full of lines and angles, not only due to the decoration, but also the proper arrangement of the elements of the dish.

As with other arts, plating can be mastered only by trial and error, gradually learning more techniques and ingredients. Major culinary schools, such as Le Cordon Bleu or ICE (Institute of Culinary Education) also offer plating courses for advanced students, both on-site and online.

Beginners can start with workshops from well-known chefs such as Gordon Ramsey or Jamie Oliver, which have different difficulty levels. They are available online and are geared more toward casual dining than fine dining. For expert tips, you can also go to guide portals, such as Lightspeed HQ. There you will find advice from many masters presented in an easy-going format. The plating courses offered by Scoolinary, Unilever Food Solutions, or The Culinary Pro are also very popular. They include real-time recordings of a chef arranging a plate. YouTube is also a great source, with free tutorials for beginners and advanced chefs.

How to introduce plating into the offerings

To achieve the desired effect, first you need to decide what kind of arrangement will best meet your target audience and who it is. Please note that good plating is by itself able to tell the guest what is on the plate and where it came from. 

Your plating journey should begin with decorating with fresh fruits and vegetables, or even edible flowers. In addition to fresh flavor, they will also provide an interesting, colorful accent that will bring life to the entire plate. 

How plating can be mixed with other food trends

Plating is a perfect opportunity to introduce guests to different food trends. The combination of innovative plating and plant-based cuisine can be found, for example, in Paris at the L'Arpège restaurant. Alain Passard, the main chef, can create wonders with vegetables. For example, he cuts tomato slices so thin, they become translucent, or perfumes dishes with lavender, rose, or fig infused oils. Much inspiration from the plant kingdom can also be seen in the plating of the Dutch restaurant Selva, where greenery reigns not only on the plate but also on the table, the walls, and the ceiling. In other words, the plating there is a design element, an integral part of the restaurant experience.

Various fine dining restaurants also use creative plating to bring street food closer to guests through their elegant presentation. That is what Momofuku Noodle Bar in New York does, where David Chang, a famous chef, turns street food classics such as ramen and bao buns into works of art. On the other hand,Gaggan in Bangkok serves Indian comfort food in a beautiful way, opting for vibrant colors and intense flavors.

Plating entices, attracts, and… sells

Taking care of the visual aspect of the dishes served is crucial to success, especially in the age of social media, where our eyes eat first. If the plate arrangement is unique, or better yet, distinctive to the establishment, it will gain popularity online, which is tantamount to an influx of new, intrigued guests.

A thoughtful arrangement also allows emphasizing specific aspects of the dish, mainly the freshness of the ingredients, which is very important not only in fine dining but also in casual dining restaurants. Fresh ingredients increase the feeling of comfort while eating and can be a showcase of the establishment, so emphasizing them is worth it.

There is no denying that the plating can create the image of a restaurant on its own. For example, at Poke Your Way, a poke bowl food truck in Detroit, rice and raw fish bowls are decorated before the eyes of customers with vibrant toppings (usually fruits or vegetables). What's more, the customer can participate in the plating, as they select the toppings themselves.

An aesthetic plate is an investment, not a decoration

Plating is a strategic move because it increases profits by stimulating guests' curiosity. Aesthetically pleasing or interesting dish decorations encourage guests to try more items of the menu. That's why it's also important to not only take care of not only not only decorating the main courses but the whole menu, from appetizers to desserts. Intriguing appetizers will encourage exploration of the menu, while a beautiful dessert will be a cherry on top and encourage guests to return.