What's more important: Taste or packaging (photos/reviews/atmosphere)?

[samsamlh]

I need to figure this out to optimize UX and journey to conversions on my app. In my case, it's about choosing a restaurant. Current apps tend to put first packaging or cuisine type, while food specific taste can be a decisive criteria on the journey to choose a place to eat.

There are a couple studies about the importance of packaging on perceived taste, but none seems to look for a ratio of importance between perceived future taste (packaging, reviews, photos) and known taste (ingredient, dish name, referring to taste memory) when the buy decision has to be made.

About customer journey : Objective past first or subjective future first?

[rceDia]

Mass produced food stuff(buy it at a store)relies on packaging to draw in the customer. Best example: Poptarts. Package pic show pastries brimming with rich filling when in fact its a thin layer of some colored paste. Poptarts have survived and are "cult classic" that gets a shout out in movies; Pulp Fiction, WW1984.. Begin with the end in mind.