MattPod: A design proposal for a multi-sensory solo dining experience

The consumption of a meal is not just a bodily requirement but can also carry significant symbolic meaning. Solo dining is often contrasted to a shared eating experience and portrayed as an inferior way of eating a meal due to lacking essential social and normative qualities. Human-computer interaction research increasingly explores different ways of enhancing the solo dining experience. However, a focus seems to be on recreating aspects essential to the shared eating experience, such as a dining companion being present, rather than trying to enhance aspects that solo diners enjoy and, therefore, contribute to a reverie in eating. Based on earlier research findings, we developed a design concept that includes sound and visual elements supporting the multi-sensory eating experience and encouraging the user to concentrate on the food rather than seeking distraction. The formative usability evaluation results indicate that the proposed design needs further refinement to evoke the anticipated effect.