Reading a Plate

Abstract

The current paper examines the development of the culinary text during the last decade, in both its written and edible forms. It opens by outlining the metamorphosis of the restaurant menu from a mere inventory of dishes into a set of metaphors, thus requiring an active process of interpretation. This is followed by an analysis of the tension in contemporary molecular cuisine, between modern and postmodern tendencies. Although ““molecular chefs”” are often described as postmodern, and adhere to theoretical concepts suggested by postmodern philosophers, the paper claims that their work is actually modern, that is ““new for the sake of new””. By enthusiastically challenging dominant culinary narratives, the chefs actually consolidate these narratives as standard reference points, therefore turning their own alternatives into mere curiosities. The paper concludes by describing the distinctive state of consciousness created by the molecular gastronomy dining experience. Facing conflicting sensory stimuli, the diner is forced to assimilate the chef's flow of associations, in order to endure the experience. This contributes to a diffusion of limits between the two, making the molecular dining experience unique, not only gastronomically but also psychologically.