Whether you own a fine dining establishment, upscale restaurant, or eclectic cafe, thoughtful and attentive plating is sure to improve customers' impressions of your business. An awareness of food presentation also allows you to demonstrate your chefs' skills to customers and helps you highlight all of your restaurant'sdelicious offerings. With an awareness of these basic principles, techniques, and tools, you're sure toenhance your business' plating and increase sales.
Things To Remember Before You Begin Plating Food:
Before you begin preparing your dish, you should consider the kind of cuisine you're serving. Are you making a hearty steak dinner, or are you preparing a delicate side dish or appetizer? You can't start building your plate until all of your flavors are finalized, so it's wise to have your ingredients prepared before you begin the actual plating process. Additionally, you'll want to consider portion sizes before you begin plating. To do so, focus on balancing your protein, carbohydrate, and vegetable to create a nutritionally balanced meal. Ultimately, carefully placed ingredients create art, but presentation should never overshadow taste.
Guidelines for Plating Food:
For tips and tricks on how to create a beautiful plate, consider the steps below:
Choose the Perfect Plate: Selecting the right plate for your meal is key to attractive food presentation. Here are some things to keep in mind: Choose the right plate. One way to conceptualize plating is to think of yourself as an artist, the plate as your canvas, and the food as your medium. Choose the right size plate. Choose your plate wisely by making sure it's big enough to allow your food tostand out, but small enough that your portions don't look too small. Choose a complementary plate color. The color of your plate is also significant. White plates are popular because they create high contrast and provide a neutral background for your colorful creations.
Utilize white space by thinking of the rim as your frame, and consider using the rule of thirds to highlight your plate'sfocal point(s). When applied to cooking, the rule of thirds prescribes placing the focal point of your dish toeither the left or right side of the plate, rather than the center.
(From "A Basic Guide To Food Presentation", Webstaurant Store)
For a comprehensive overview of all aspects of Food Plating, click here:
https://cisock.wordpress.com/2019/04/29/%EF%BB%BFa-basic-guide-to-food-presentation/
The Meridian Education Corporation published a teacher's guide about the Art of Food Presentation. For inspiration, you can download it on our site "Recipes & More"!
Find practical advice here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQKoa0FofOo
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