Work Around Menu Psychology at Restaurants (via Lifehacker)

This was on Lifehacker today. The full NY Times article is worth a read.

Work Around Menu Psychology at Restaurants

The New York Times has a great read on menu psychology and how the fonts, ordering, and descriptions of food is engineered to get diners spending more at restaurants. Taken a different way, it's a handy guide to culinary counter-intelligence.

Liking that item in the top-right corner of the menu, with the dotted border line around it? That's fine, but be aware it's probably one of the most profitable items for the owner to serve. In tough economic times, many restaurants have turned to menu redesign as a means of bringing in more cash. If you're interested in getting a full read on the food, and not just letting your lizard brain give in to the highest-margin item on the menu, heed these examples:

Some restaurants use what researchers call decoys. For example, they may place a really expensive item at the top of the menu, so that other dishes look more reasonably priced; research shows that diners tend to order neither the most nor least expensive items, drifting toward the middle. Or restaurants might play up a profitable dish by using more appetizing adjectives and placing it next to a less profitable dish with less description so the contrast entices the diner to order the profitable dish.

Not that there's anything wrong with ordering a profitable item off the menu, but you want to make sure your eatery isn't sub-consciously hiding something truly appealing from your decision process.

If you've done any menu design yourself, or know the tricks of your own local eatery, let's hear about them in the comments.

Restaurants Use Menu Psychology to Entice Diners [NYTimes.com]