How 'Sonic Seasoning' can Change the Way Our Food Tastes

The past few years has seen the research into food turn in a new direction. Having established that elements such as restaurant menus, crockery, furniture and lighting can effect the way our food tastes, researchers are now setting their sights (or ears) on sound.

According to cooks.ndtv.com, what we listen to when we eat our food can depend on the way it tastes. "Sonic seasoning" can switch the sensations within our mouth to impact the flavours that are most dominant. For example, listening to a low-pitched sound will cause taste buds to focus on chocolate's bitter elements, whereas a switch to high frequency can cause the chocolate's sweetness to open up.

It's a notion that brands are paying attention to, with reports that Ben & Jerry's are set to announce a sonic range of ice cream flavours in which customers can access complementary sounds via their phones as they eat.

English chef Heston Blumenthal has also played around with the idea, introducing his iPod-enhanced seafood dish "Sounds of the Sea".

While more research is needed, it's expected that many restaurants will be taking the idea into consideration when selecting their background music. It's even expected that planes will get in on the act, carefully selecting their menus to include umami-rich ingredients that suit a plane's frequencies.

Could this be the end of bad plane food?

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Mireille Kilgour

Mireille Kilgour

Mireille Kilgour has been an entrepreneur for 35 years in the hospitality sector. French born, she has been an accomplished business owner and operator for a number of Sydney venues. Leading the industry with high profile institutions such as Lamrock Café Bondi, she has endless passion for the industry, and now has the pleasure of supporting restaurants to fill their tables with the new Good Food Gift Card program.