Sensory analysis and observational study in an experimental restaurant: Pilot study

Food businesses test their products to predict their success in the future market. Intrusive methods, such as self-reported evaluations in laboratory settings, are used to assess the appreciation for those products. However, the data collected in such conditions is not always predictive of consumers behaviour. This research reports the evaluations of two kinds of bread by restaurant consumers (n = 107) before and after the meal, using self-reported assessments of liking and preference in a 'one-shot' test conducted in controlled conditions. Additionally, respondents' choices and intake of the same products in an ad libitum setting during the meal was recorded. For the 'one-shot' evaluation, there was no difference in liking scores between products, while the preference test showed a tendency towards bread with a higher fibre content (whole wheat bread) (49% versus 36% for white bread, p = 0.072). The non-intrusive method of behaviour recording demonstrated a higher tendency for the consumption of the white bread (“baguette”) (60 versus 47 participants, p = 0.076). The preference test indicated a significant stated preference for whole wheat bread before than after the meal (49% before versus 34% after, p = 0.026). This result illustrates the challenge of predicting preferences and behaviours. Self-reported preferences in questionnaires may be subject to hypothetical biases, particularly when healthy products are involved, and they may fluctuate in time. The link between appreciation and real choice behaviours may also vary with the setting. The results bring some insight to food professionals regarding the value of controlled self-reported evaluations, compared to controlled observation to predict market success of a product.