Gastrophysics

Freakonomics for eating- a ground-breaking and tasty book by the world-leading expert in sensory scienceWhy do we consume 35% more food when eating with one more person, and 75% more when with three? Why are 27% of drinks bought on aeroplanes tomato juice? How are chefs and companies planning to transform our dining experiences, and what can we learn from their cutting-edge insights to make memorable meals at home?These are just some of the ingredients of Gastrophysics, in which the pioneering Oxford professor Charles Spence shows how our senses link up in the most extraordinary ways, and reveals the importance of all the 'off-the-plate' elements of a meal- the weight of cutlery, the placing on the plate, the background music and much more. Whether dining alone or at a dinner party, on a plane or in front of the TV, he reveals how to understand what we're tasting and influence what others experience. Mealtimes will genuinely never be the same again.

“Truly accessible, entertaining and informative. On every page there are ideas to set you thinking and widen your horizons”

-- Heston Blumenthal, OBE
His delight in weird food facts is infectious...fascinating -- James McConnachie Sunday Times
Not many people are as ready to realize the importance of the senses as Charles Spence -- Ferran Adria, El Bulli restaurant, Spain
Popular science at its best. Insightful, entertainingly written and peppered throughout with facts you can use in the kitchen, in the classroom, or in the pub -- Daniel J. Levitin, New York Times bestselling author of 'The Organized Mind' and 'This Is Your Brain on Music'
This is partly serious tome and partly an amusing guide for the layperson to a whole new gustatory world. Gastrophysics is packed with such tasty factual morsels that could be served up at dinner parties. If Spence can percolate all these factual morsels to the mainstream, the benefits to all of us would be obvious -- Nick Curtis Daily Telegraph
Spence allows people to appreciate the multisensory experience of eating The New Yorker
The scientist changing the way we eat Guardian
Spence romps around such factoids in the style of a Blue Peter presenter . . . fascinating and provocative -- Melanie Reid Times
A fascinating look at the science of food and how our perception is shaped by all our senses, not just taste Sunday Times
If simply changing the name of a dish on a menu or the color of the plate on which it is served can dramatically alter our perception of taste and food quality, then everyone in the restaurant industry needs to read this and take a deeper look at the scientific secrets Professor Spence reveals in Gastrophysics -- Larry Olmsted, New York Times bestselling author of 'Real Food, Fake Food: What You Don’t Know About What You’re Eating & What You Can Do About It'
Wonderfully curious and thought-provoking . . . brilliant -- Bee Wilson Guardian
Spence cheerily whisks the reader through the senses like a magician . . . a mind-bending menu of fascinating insights -- Nicola Davis Observer
Revealing, very interesting and well worth understanding . . . highly enlightening -- Rose Prince Spectator
Spence takes a jovial pleasure in puncturing our perceptions and showing that there's a lot more going on in our mouths than what we think we're tasting . . . Spence has given us much food for thought -- Julia Platt Leonard Independent
A chatty whirl through the latest discoveries and their real-world applications -- Rachel Laudan Wall Street Journal
I wanted to reach out and thank you for your absolutely brilliant book Gastrophysics. As a thirty year restaurant veteran just venturing out on my own into the wild world of consulting, I found your research confirmed many of my long-held beliefs while adding tons of things I had never considered. -- Sean S. Reiter, Chief Synthesist, Sean Reiter Consulting

It can't fail to entertain, inform and ultimately dazzle

-- Heston Blumenthal, chef and owner of The Fat Duck, on The Perfect Meal

Professor Charles Spence has spent the last two decades researching how people perceive the world around them at the Crossmodal Research Laboratory at Oxford University, earning him the international reputation as the expert in multisensory perception and experience design. He has popularized the term 'gastrophysics', and leads the field in this ground-breaking area of science that is rapidly transforming the way in which we all experience what we eat and drink. He has consulted for many multinational companies, including Unilever, PepsiCo, Diageo, Pernod Ricard, P&G, Nestle and Twinings, advising on various aspects of multisensory design, packaging, and branding, and has conducted research with a number of world-leading chefs, mixologists and baristas, including Heston Blumenthal and Ferran Adri . In 2008 he was awarded an Ig Nobel Prize for his ground-breaking work on the 'sonic crisp', demonstrating how a louder crunch makes a crisp seem fresher.

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