How can we design gastronomic experiences that are both delightful and provocative? Insights from creating L’Anòmala

In this article, we present a research-through-design (RtD) exploration into the creation of dining experiences that are as delightful as they are provocative. Through the design and deployment of L’Anòmala, a prototype of a pop-up restaurant concept created to encourage people to reflect on their eating, we explored how to create gastronomic experiences that are as thought-provoking as they are fun and captivating. A reflexive analysis of our design process, our prototype and its deployment led to designerly insights into how to create gastronomic experiences that stimulate reflection while remaining enjoyable. We thus present a twofold contribution: First, we pose L’Anòmala as an inspirational design exemplar that illustrates this exciting prospect of entangling delight and provocation in gastronomy design. Second, we share first-hand learnings from our project that can help other designers produce these kinds of experiences. Our generative, intermediate-level knowledge contribution begins to hint at the possibility of a novel genre of gastronomy, which we tentatively call provocative delight , and provides early inspiration and actionable guidance for approaching it in practice.