How Restaurant Menus Make You Spend More

Lynne Rosette Kasper describes a menu as an "invitation to pleasure" but a smart restaurateur uses menu design to maximize profits.  Francis Lam at Salon explores menu design psychology and why we spend more for dinner than we anticipated.

Portland Restaurants Receive 12 Beard Nominations

IACP's own Mike Thelin reports in Portland Monthly that the James Beard Foundation unveiled the first round of nominees for its annual awards.

He writes, "[Portland] contenders in national categories include Higgins Restaurant and Bar for Outstanding Restaurant, Le Pigeon’s Gabe Rucker and Castagna’s Matt Lightner as Rising Star Chefs, and Ping as Best New Restaurant. For the first time in a few years, Portland dominates Seattle in the Best Chef Northwest category with seven of all 20 spots. Nominees include Nostrana’s Cathy Whims, Gabe Rucker, Autentica’s Oswaldo Bibiano, Toro Bravo’s John Gorham, Beast’s Naomi Pomeroy, Pok Pok’s Andy Ricker, and Jenn Lewis of Lincoln."

Matching Wine to Music

The Telegraph says that matching wine to music may help create a seductive atmosphere on Valentine's Day.  Listening to certain music enhances the pleasure of drinking certain wines, as has been suggested by research at Heriot-Watt University.

IACP Conference Buzz from Nashville

The Nashville Scene reports on the upcoming 2010 IACP Annual Conference in Portland and the incredible, in-depth educational programming offered.  Nicki Wood writes, "the IACP is the awesomest [food association], if only for its incredible annual conference."  Thanks, Nicki!

2011 Budget Requests for FDA

According to 2011 federal budget requests, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration would see a 6 percent jump in its budget to $2.51 billion. In part, the funds would be spent on food safety, which has been flagged as a domestic priority.