US restaurant revamps food to look better on Instagram

An American restaurant chain has proved the old adage that image is everything by revamping the food on its menu to make it more "shareable" on social media.

Chili's Grill & Bar is spending about $750,000 (£470,000) a year to egg-wash their burger buns so that they photograph better.

"It just makes it look great. It glistens, it shines," Wyman Roberts, CEO of Brinker International, Chili's parent company told the Associated Press.

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It has also started cutting into ribs into sections and stacking them as well as serving its chips in a stainless steel holder because it "looks cool".

Chili’s has been looking for a way to boost profits amid growing competition between sit-down chain restaurants and sales that have been growing by just one per cent a year.

It hired a brand consulting firm which said the company needed to appeal to "new school" customers. These people can fall into any age group, but are defined by their desire to share details of their lives on social media, including their dining experiences.

The company now considers how shareable a plate of food is when devising its menu. "We look a lot more at how the food is presented," said Roberts.

"Food is the second most photographed thing, after yourself," he said. "Selfies of people eating food is the sweet spot."

The chain's new culinary focus is part of wider push to attract tech savvy diners, says Bloomberg. Last year, the company kitted out all of its tables with digital devices which allow customers to order refills and settle their bill without having to get a servers' attention.