First impressions: Food Presentation

My daughter is a food stylist and opened my eyes to the importance of food presentation. We eat with our eyes before we taste with our mouths…

A few rules:
• Garnishes should be edible. Yes, that goes for flower and / or leaves too…
• Keep it simple : if you have tomatoes and fresh herbs providing color , it is really unnecessary to add a circle of orange with a sprig of parsley too.
• Yes, definitely lose the sprig of parsley on the orange or tomato slice!
• Leave a clean rim on the plate: a rim full of sprinkled paprika or finely chopped parsley is so yesterday. A clean rim leads the focus to the food in the centre.
• Balance : distribute the food on the plate so it does not appear lopsided
• Strive for a variety re. colors and shapes. Add color with garnish or food and keep shape in mind too : e.g. when serving a fried egg (round) use tomato wedges or baby tomato halves heaped together; when serving scrambled eggs off-set it with round tomato slice.
• Add interest with a different plate: you will sometimes have businessman who will have the same bacon, sausages, mushroom and eggs 3 mornings in a row! Add interest by using a square, colored or patterned plate on alternative mornings