Restaurant Dish Research Articles

Sounds spicy: Enhancing the evaluation of piquancy by means of a customised crossmodally congruent soundtrack

The aim of the present research was to uncover the auditory parameters that correspond to the experience of spiciness/piquancy in food, and to assess whether such crossmodal correspondences have perceptual consequences when it comes to evaluating the spiciness of actual foods tested in a naturalistic environment. An online study (Experiment 1) was conducted first in order to determine the acoustical/musical parameters that best match spiciness. The results were used to compose a spicy soundscape that was incorporated into the subsequent experiments. Next, a between-participants study (Experiment 2) was conducted to test the effect of different background sound conditions on participants’ expected and actual ratings of a novel restaurant dish. Four sound conditions were used in testing: the aforementioned spicy soundtrack, a sweet soundtrack, white noise, and silence. The expected spiciness of the dish was significantly higher in the spicy soundscape group as compared to the other groups. However, no significant differences were observed in the actual taste ratings. A contributing factor to this later result may have been the large disparity between the participants’ expectations of spiciness and the actual (mild) spiciness of the test dish itself. To follow-up, a study (Experiment 3) was conducted with a spicier food sample and the same sound conditions. Here, the results revealed that the rated spiciness of the food sample was significantly higher in the spicy soundtrack condition than in the other sound conditions. Finally, a study using both mild and hot salsa (Experiment 4) demonstrated an interaction effect between the sound condition and stimuli spiciness level, consistent with the assimilation-contrast model of consumer expectation disconfirmation. These results therefore demonstrate that a soundscape with auditory attributes corresponding to spiciness can enhance the perception of spiciness in foods, likely via the setting of sensory expectations.

Analysis of the content, colourants, fats, nitrate and nitrite in advertised foods and biological fluids of Egyptian children

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the content and some synthetic food colourants, total fats, nitrate and nitrite in both advertised foods (AF) and serum and urine samples of children (8 to 12 years) and their impact on childrens’ diet and health. Design/methodology/approach Analysis of the content of the AF was done by watching the three Egyptian children’s channels (ECC) for 38 hours. Amaranth, Indigo Carmine, Tartrazine, nitrate and nitrite were analysed in all AF and in serum and urine specimens of children. However, total fats were only analysed in the advertised processed meats and in the restaurant dishes. Lipid profile was also estimated in children. Findings The AF accounted for 46-54 per cent of the total advertisements presented. The advertised restaurant dishes were predominantly high in fats, 63 and 55 per cent in restaurant dishes and processed meats, respectively. Tartrazine was the only food colourant found in soft drinks and jelly powders measuring 0.2-15 µg/ml and 25-125 µg/g, respectively. The average levels of total nitrate and nitrite were higher than the acceptable daily intake of the Egyptian and WHO limits (125 mg/kg). Urinary Tartrazine and serum and urinary total nitrate and nitrite were significantly higher in the viewers’ children for the ECC and at borderline for lipid profile compared to non-viewers’ children. Research limitations/implications The most harmful effect of these advertisements is the cumulative effect of AF that undermines progress towards a healthy diet for children. AF may expose children to non-communicable disease in the future. Practical implications The local policy context requires action to set clear rules for children’s food advertising and monitor processed meat products to tackle exceeded levels of nitrate and nitrite. Originality/value This is one of the first studies to analyse colourants, fats, nitrate and nitrite in AF and in the serum and urine of children. This research shows a large number of AF (1,112) in the ECC for 38 hours with statistically significant increase of Tartrazine, nitrate and nitrite in AF (p<0.0001) and in biological fluids (p<0.05).

Food Leftover Practices among Consumers in Selected Countries in Europe, South and North America.

Foodborne illnesses may be related to many food production factors with home practices of consumers playing an important role in food safety. Consumer behavior for handling food leftovers has been studied, however little work on comparisons among countries has been published. The objective of this study was to investigate home food leftover practices of people from North American, South American, and European countries. Surveys were conducted with approximately 100 or more consumers in Argentina, Colombia, the United States, Estonia, Italy, Russia, and Spain. The participants responded to questions related to the length of time different types of food leftovers; such as meat, fresh salads, or restaurant dishes would be kept refrigerated or would be left at room temperature before refrigeration. Researchers also investigated how consumers would determine if the food was still safe for consumption. Potentially risky behaviors were observed in all seven countries. For instance, 55.8% of Estonians, 25% of Russians and 25.8% of Argentinean participants left food out at room temperature for several hours before storing in the refrigerator. Furthermore, 25%–29% of Colombian, Estonian, and Spanish consumers would look, smell, and taste leftovers to determine its probable safety. Correct handling of leftovers is an important aspect of consumer food safety. Although the surveys cannot be representative of all consumers in each country, they do provide an initial overview of comparative practices for handling leftovers among different countries. This provides government and educators with information on potential universal and unique consumer food safety issues related to handling leftover foods among various countries.

Gnathostomiasis: an Emerging Infection of Raw Fish Consumers in Gnathostoma Nematode-Endemic and Nonendemic Countries

Gnathostomiasis, a helminthic infection commonly reported in Southeast Asia and Latin America, may follow consumption of raw seafood infected with muscle-encysted larvae of Gnathostoma species nematodes. As a result of increasingly exotic tastes for local ethnic dishes, including raw seafood, some regions outside of gnathostome-endemic areas import live species for raw consumption. This may facilitate imported human gnathostomiasis or potentially the establishment of this zoonosis in formerly nonendemic regions. Traveling to a gnathostome-endemic area is no longer a criterion for diagnosis. The objectives of this review are to enhance clinician awareness of this infection by describing the behavioral risk factors for its acquisition, life-cycle, clinical manifestations, diagnosis, management, and prevention. Internet search engines were queried with the key medical subject heading words. Case reports, case series, epidemiological investigations, and laboratory studies were reviewed; high risk behaviors for gnathostomiasis were identified; and human cases were stratified as cutaneous gnathostomiasis, visceral gnathostomiasis, neurognathostomiasis, and ocular gnathostomiasis. The greatest risk factors for gnathostomiasis included the consumption of raw freshwater seafood dishes in endemic regions and the consumption of raw imported or domestic seafood dishes in households and ethnic restaurants in many nonendemic regions. Gnathostomiasis is no longer a disease of returning travelers, and autochthonous cases may be anticipated to increase as a result of the importation of live Gnathostoma-infected species and the potential establishment of regional zoonoses of Gnathostoma-infected wild species. Since the eradication of gnathostomiasis is unlikely given the global distribution of Gnathostoma nematodes, the only effective preventive strategy is to educate persons in endemic and nonendemic areas that fish, eels, frogs, snakes, and birds must be cooked thoroughly first before eating and not eaten raw or marinated. The onset of migratory subcutaneous swellings with hyper-eosinophilia weeks to months after consuming raw seafood should provoke suspicion of gnathostomiasis.

서울지역 음식점 메뉴의 나트륨 및 칼륨 함량 비교

나트륨 저감화를 위한 식생활 지도의 기초자료로 활용하고자 서울지역 다소비 음식점 메뉴를 대상으로 나트륨 함량이 높은 국 및 탕류, 찌개 및 전골류, 면류 등에 대한 나트륨 및 칼륨 함량을 조사하였다. 음식점 메뉴는 생선찌개 등 25종류 144건과 김치 50건이다. 음식점 메뉴 중 김치의 나트륨 및 칼륨 평균 함량이 각각 <TEX>$554.9{\pm}155.5mg/100g$</TEX>, <TEX>$225.1{\pm}69.1mg/100g$</TEX>으로 가장 높았으며, 반면 설렁탕의 나트륨 및 칼륨 평균 함량이 각각 <TEX>$24.2{\pm}5.8mg/100g$</TEX>, <TEX>$12.7{\pm}3.9mg/100g$</TEX>으로 가장 낮게 나타났다. 음식점 메뉴의 나트륨과 칼륨 평균 함량간의 상관관계를 분석한 결과, 상관계수가 0.782(P < 0.01)로 양의 선형관계가 있는 것으로 나타났다. 나트륨/칼륨비는 불고기가 <TEX>$1.17{\pm}0.44$</TEX>로 가장 적합한 비를 나타내었고, 우동, 잔치국수, 칼국수의 나트륨/칼륨 비는 10이상으로 높게 나타나 칼륨 함량에 비해 나트륨 함량이 높음을 알 수 있었다. 음식군 분류별 나트륨 및 칼륨 평균 함량은 통계적으로 유의한 차이가 있는 것으로 나타났다(p < 0.001). 음식군별 나트륨 평균 함량은 김치류가 <TEX>$554.9{\pm}155.5mg/100g$</TEX>으로 가장 높았고, 찌개 및 전골류, 국 및 탕류, 볶음류, 면류 순이었다. 칼륨 평균 함량도 김치류가 <TEX>$225.1{\pm}69.1mg/100g$</TEX>으로 가장 높았고 볶음류, 찌개 및 전골류, 국 및 탕류, 면류 순이었다. 음식군 분류별 나트륨/칼륨 비도 통계적으로 유의한 차이가 있는 것으로 나타났다(p < 0.001). 볶음류가 <TEX>$1.18{\pm}0.44$</TEX>로 나트륨/칼륨 비가 1에 가장 근접하였고 김치류, 찌개 및 전골류, 국 및 탕류, 면류 순이었다. 적절한 나트륨/칼륨 비의 유지가 건강에 도움이 되므로 나트륨 섭취를 줄이고 칼륨 섭취를 증가시킬 수 있는 방법에 대한 홍보와 함께 효과적인 식단 및 식생활교육의 개발과 보급이 필요할 것으로 판단된다. To determine the contents of sodium (Na) and potassium (K) for restaurant dishes, 194 cases classified 26 kinds of restaurant dishes were collected from restaurants in Seoul and were analysed using the atomic absorption spectroscopy. Average contents of Na and K in Kimchi among restaurant dishes were highest as <TEX>$554.9{\pm}155.5mg/100g$</TEX>, <TEX>$225.1{\pm}69.1mg/100g$</TEX>, while average contents of Na and K were lowest in Seolleongtang as <TEX>$24.2{\pm}5.8mg/100g$</TEX>, <TEX>$12.7{\pm}3.9mg/100g$</TEX> respectively. The contents between Na and K in restaurant dishes had a strong correlation of positive linear judging from 0.782 (p-value < 0.01) of the correlation coefficient. The Na/K ratio of Bulgogi was appropriate as <TEX>$1.17{\pm}0.44$</TEX>, while those of Udon, banquet noodles, Kalguksu were very high as shown more than 10. The contents of Na and K were examined 5 dish groups as Gook/Tang, Jjigae/Jeongol, stir-fried dish, noodle and Kimchi. Average contents of Na and K classified by dish groups were significantly difference (p-value < 0.001). Average content of Na among dish groups was highest in Kimchi as <TEX>$554.9{\pm}155.5mg/100g$</TEX> followed by Jjigae/Jeongol, Gook/Tang, stir-fried dish and noodle. Similar to Na content, average content of K was highest in Kimchi as <TEX>$225.1{\pm}69.1mg/100g$</TEX> followed by stir-fried dish, Jjigae/Jeongol, Gook/Tang and noodle. The ratio of Na/K by classified groups of dishes was shown as significantly difference (p-value < 0.001). Stir-fried dish was <TEX>$1.18{\pm}0.44$</TEX> close to 1 followed by Kimchi, Jjigae/Jeongol, Gook/Tang, and noodle.

Substitution of high-priced fish with low-priced species: Adulteration of common sole in German restaurants

High-priced fish and seafood prepared as restaurant dish is especially prone to fraudulent substitution due to the lack of morphologic characters and less stringent labelling requirements. Common sole (Solea solea) is considered one of the most valuable and tasty fish species on the European markets and fraudulent substitutions of common sole in restaurant stores have been reported by official German food authorities in the past (from 2005 to 2011). The aim of the present study was to assess the substitution of common sole prepared as dishes in restaurants and to identify species used as substitutes for common sole. Furthermore, it was investigated whether substitution takes place at the level of the restaurants or earlier within the food supply chain. Altogether, 47 common sole dishes were ordered incognito in 24 restaurants and 98 whole fish specimens or fish fillets were purchased from 35 different shops (including wholesale dealers and speciality markets). Species identities were determined by cytochrome b gene sequencing and isoelectric focusing of sarcoplasmic proteins, which are official German methods for fish species identification afforded by §64 of the German Food and Feed Code (LFGB). 50% of the restaurant samples were shown to be substituted by species of lower commercial values, such as catfish species (Pangasidae), Senegalese tonguesole (Cynoglossus senegalensis) or Portuguese sole (Synaptura lusitanica). As almost all samples from the retail were shown to be authentic – only one sample was identified as lemon sole (Microstomus kitt) – we presume that fraudulent substitution is performed by restaurant owners and staff rather than by persons responsible for fishing, manufacturing or retail.

Prevalence of Bacteria and Absence of Anisakid Parasites in Raw and Prepared Fish and Seafood Dishes in Spanish Restaurants

This study evaluated the presence of bacteria and anisakid parasites in 45 samples of raw anchovies in vinegar, a dish widely eaten in Spain, and in 227 samples of cooked fish and cephalopods served in Spanish food service establishments. Our analysis showed that, according to European and Spanish regulation, 14 to 30% of the prepared fish and cephalopod dishes exceeded the maximum allowable level for mesophilic aerobic counts, and 10 to 40% of these samples exceeded the allowable levels for Enterobacteriaceae. None of the studied samples showed evidence of anisakid parasites, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella, or Listeria monocytogenes. These results indicate that application of hazard analysis and critical control points, food safety training courses, and routine inspections in compliance with current European and Spanish legislation help protect consumer health.

A method for automatic extraction of multiword units representing business aspects from user reviews

The article describes a semi‐supervised approach to extracting multiword aspects of user‐written reviews that belong to a given category. The method starts with a small set of seed words, representing the target category, and calculates distributional similarity between the candidate and seed words. We compare 3 distributional similarity measures (Lin's, Weeds's, and balAPinc), and a document retrieval function, BM25, adapted as a word similarity measure. We then introduce a method for identifying multiword aspects by using a combination of syntactic rules and a co‐occurrence association measure. Finally, we describe a method for ranking multiword aspects by the likelihood of belonging to the target aspect category. The task used for evaluation is extraction of restaurant dish names from a corpus of restaurant reviews.

Assessing the influence of the color of the plate on the perception of a complex food in a restaurant setting

Nowadays, more and more importance is given to how restaurant dishes are visually presented. With regard to the color of the plate, several recent studies have demonstrated that identical foods served on plates (or in containers) of different colors are often perceived differently at both the sensorial and hedonic levels. However, to date, these effects have not been tested in an ecologically valid setting with a range of more complex foods in order to assess the generalizability of the findings. The aims of the present study were to test the extent to which the color of the plate may influence the gustatory and hedonic experiences of a complex food. Specifically, we investigated diners’ perception of three desserts served on a white or black plate in a between-participants experimental design in a real restaurant setting. The results demonstrated that the color of the plate exerted a significant influence on people’s perception of the food, but that this effect varied as a function of the type of dessert served. The effects cannot be explained only in terms of color contrast. Color-flavor associations, for example, black with intense chocolate flavor, or even sophisticated chocolate, could have an impact too. Interestingly, the perceptual pattern for each dessert was constant for each plate used; that is, for all of the attributes rated, the higher scores were obtained with the same plate, for all of the desserts. These results confirm the importance of the color of the plate (or background color) on people’s expectation and perception of food, even in realistic and less controlled conditions, such as that of a restaurant.

Ensuring seafood identity: Grouper identification by real-time nucleic acid sequence-based amplification (RT-NASBA)

Grouper are one of the most economically important seafood products in the state of Florida and their popularity as a high-end restaurant dish is increasing across the U.S. There is an increased incidence rate of the purposeful, fraudulent mislabeling of less costly and more readily available fish species as grouper in the U.S., particularly in Florida. This is compounded by commercial quotas on grouper becoming increasingly more restrictive, which continues to drive both wholesale and restaurant prices higher each year. Currently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recognize 56 species of fish that can use “grouper” as an acceptable market name for interstate commerce. This group of fish includes species from ten different genera, making accurate taxonomic identification difficult especially if distinguishing features such as skin, head, and tail have been removed. This is leading regulatory agencies to employ genetic identification methods which tend to have much higher species-level resolution than phenotypic methods. Standard genetic identification methods are highly technical and require expensive lab-based equipment to perform, which often leads to longer turnover times. We have developed a generic grouper assay that detects the majority of the grouper species listed on the 2011 FDA Seafood List, including all of the species found in Florida waters. This assay is based upon real-time nucleic acid sequence-based amplification (RT-NASBA) targeting mitochondrial 16S rRNA for the accurate detection of grouper. This assay can be performed in fewer than 90 min with little potential for cross-reactivity from non-target species.

Phone-Based Restaurant Recommendation System by Using Position Information and Association Rules

With the rapid development of smart-phone applications, how to make the ordering process via smart-phones more convenient and intelligent has become a hotspot. This paper puts forward a method of restaurant dish recommendation relying on position information and association rules. In addition, this paper has designed and developed a restaurant recommendation system based on mobile phone. The system would fetch the real-time location information via smart-phones, and provide customers personalized restaurant and dish recommendation service. According to the related applications, this system can successfully recommend the related restaurants and food information to customers.

The potential use of the Caribbean flounder Paralichthys tropicus as an aquaculture species

The Caribbean flounder Paralichthys tropicus is a relatively economic seafood specie in Venezuela, mainly as a high-price restaurant dish. Preliminary studies have been conducted at the School of Applied Marine Sciences (University of Oriente) to evaluate the potentiality of the species. In northeastern Venezuela the species is distributed around the Islands of Margarita and Cubagua, where it has two distinct spawning seasons, from December to March and from July to August. This study reports the results of preliminary research conducted on some reproductive aspects of the Caribbean flounder and its induced spawning under laboratory conditions, stomach content analysis, and chemical proximal analyses of flesh and gonads. During January 1997 a total of 37 individuals (27 females:10 males) were captured alive using fishing nets deployed at various locations around Cubagua and Margarita islands. Average female weight was 430.6 (s.d. 414.5) g, and average male weight was 305.1 (s.d. 218.7) g. During February 1997 six additional individuals were captured in the same area and transported live to the laboratory for spawning induction. Three females with an average weight of 931.1 (s.d. 515.9) g and three males with an average weight of 576.5 (s.d. 121.1) g were injected with commercial grade Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) at 2 UI/g (females) and 1 IU/g (males). Average ovocite size was 614.6 (s.d. 24.6) μm. After hormonal injection animals were placed in 2 m 3 rearing tank with continuous water exchange and aeration, with 39 ppt. salinity and temperature of 24.1°C. The first observed spawning occurred 11 h after hormonal treatment, and a second one was detected 24 h later. Fertilized eggs had an average size of 684.6 (s.d. 27.20) μm. The embryonic development lasted until the blastula stage was reached and then it stopped. No egg hatching was detected. Adult fish are still being maintained in the tank, have adapted well to rearing conditions, and appear to have an acceptable growth rate for aquaculture specie.

A Short Dietary Method for Epidemiologic Studies : II. Variability of Measured Nutrient Intakes

Statistical analyses were performed on the measured 7-day food records of 93 Japanese-American men to investigate the variability of their daily nutrient intakes before developing a short dietary method for epidemiologic studies. Individual daily intakes of calories, protein, fat, carbohydrate, and sodium were analyzed for the following characteristics: 1) Equality of variance of the daily intakes and the transformed logarithmic values. 2) Normality of the distribution of the daily errors. 3) Comparison of daily means, standard deviations, and pair-wise correlation. 4) Differences between persons and days. The variances of the five dietary factors were heterogeneous, indicating large individual differences in daily eating patterns. In addition, analyses of the sodium data revealed that the variance was dependent on the mean intake, the daily residual errors deviated from a normal distribution, and the daily means of the sample differed significantly. Possible sources of error in the sodium data were the measurements of seasonings in food preparation, amounts of salt added to prepared foods, ingredients of restaurant dishes and new commercial products, and average values in food composition tables. A study that includes measured 7-day records, laboratory analysis of all food items of questionable sodium content, weight of salt additions at the table, and analysis of 24-hr urinary outputs is needed to determine if accurate estimates of sodium intakes can be obtained by current dietary methods.