Pastor Ken
During my recent trip to Japan, I noticed a common scene at restaurants in several cities. Outside many restaurants, displayed in glass windows, were models of the restaurant’s main dishes—various noodles, traditional Japanese set meals, drinks, pastries, all represented by brightly colored food models, some with a price tag. For tourists who don’t speak Japanese, this is incredibly convenient. You can simply tell the staff the number of the dish or point to the food model, and you’re guaranteed to enjoy a good meal.
The craft of making 3D food models in Japan has a long history, dating back to the 1920s. Early materials were often made of paraffin, but they tend to deteriorate over time because of sunlight and temperature. Today, after much development, models made from specialized polymers are durable. Since models represent a restaurant’s unique dishes, they are mostly handmade, which makes them quite expensive. Some food models are so intricately crafted that they require the artisan’s skill and aesthetic sense, transforming them into a form of art. Certain food models are even sold as art work.
The purpose of displaying food models outside restaurants is obviously to attract customers. This model display practice is hugely popular in Japan, partly because maintaining tradition is an important part of their culture. A chef may use the same ingredients for years, cutting them to the same size, and placing them in the same spot on a bowl of noodles. With bento boxes, they are even more meticulous—how the food is arranged and the amount of each ingredient remains the same, whether it’s the first box or the hundredth. Therefore, the models can consistently imitate the actual food.
Customer expectations are also consistent. If the food looks and tastes a certain way today, they expect it to look and taste the same two weeks later. I particularly admire some century-old establishments, where the chefs are already in their third generation, and the dishes are said to remain unchanged from the past. Perhaps the chefs and their customers have a mutual understanding that the dish has reached perfection and needs no further alteration.
Thanks to advancements in printing technology, restaurants worldwide now offer menus with colorful photographs, making it easier to distinguish ingredients and whetting appetites. With the integration of 3D printing and artificial intelligence, likely it’ll be easy to produce all kinds of food and drink models for display. However, if the models significantly differ in shape, color, or portion from the actual dishes served, customers might feel deceived, which could backfire. A first-time visit might not lead to a second.
More importantly, beyond the realism of the models, the actual quality of the food needs to be good. Food enthusiasts pay attention to the color, aroma, and taste. Or rather, they judge food through visual, olfactory, and gustatory senses. If it only looks good but doesn’t taste good, there won’t be a second visit. After all, the main purpose of going to a restaurant is to enjoy the food and drinks. The models are just a way to whet the appetite.
