According to a study by Johnson & Wales University, 29% of restaurant-goers said good plating makes the food itself taste better. For many high-end restaurants, the first step to pretty plating is to create a framework, or the overall shape of how food, garnishes, and sauces lay on the plate, and one of the most popular shapes is the curve.

There's several reasons why arranging food in a sweeping curve down the center of a round plate looks good. Acclaimed chef Thomas Keller says that "The less on the plate, the better," and free-form plating leaves plenty of negative space (AKA empty parts) on the plate that makes the food the star, while also adding fluidity.

Curves create a suggestion of movement and dimension that makes the meal look dynamically appealing, and asymmetry makes plating look natural and interesting, compared to plopping the food in the middle of the plate. For restaurants, curved plating is simple enough to be done on a busy night, yet stylish enough to make an impression.