Question

In the 1760s, Mathurin Roze opened a series of shops that boasted(享有) a special meat soup called consommé. Although the main attraction was the soup, Roze's chain shops also set a new standard for dining out, which helped to establish Roze as the inventor of the modern restaurant.

Today, scholars have generated large amounts of instructive research about restaurants. Take visual hints that influence what we eat: diners served themselves about 20 percent more pasta(意大利面食) when their plates matched their food. When a dark-colored cake was served on a black plate rather than a white one, customers recognized it as sweeter and more tasty.

Lighting matters, too. When Berlin restaurant customers ate in darkness, they couldn't tell how much they'd had: those given extra-large shares ate more than everyone else, none the wiser—they didn’t feel fuller, and they were just as ready for dessert.

Time is money, but that principle means different things for different types of restaurants. Unlike fast-food places, fine dining shops prefer customers to stay longer and spend. One way to encourage customers to stay and order that extra round: put on some Mozart(莫扎特).When classical, rather than pop, music was playing, diners spent more. Fast music hurried diners out.

Particular scents also have an effect: diners who got the scent of lavender(薰衣草) stayed longer and spent more than those who smelled lemon, or no scent.

Meanwhile, things that you might expect to discourage spending—"bad" tables, crowding. high prices — don't necessarily. Diners at bad tables — next to the kitchen door, say — spent nearly as much as others but soon fled. It can be concluded that restaurant keepers need not "be overly concerned about ‘bad’ tables," given that they're profitable. As for crowds, a Hong Kong study found that they increased a restaurant's reputation, suggesting great food at fair prices. And doubling a buffet's price led customers to say that its pizza was 11 percent tastier.

1.The underlined phrase "none the wiser" in paragraph 3 most probably implies that the customers were ________.

A. not aware of eating more than usual

B. not willing to share food with others

C. not conscious of the food quality

D. not fond of the food provided

2.How could a fine dining shop make more profit?

A. Playing classical music.

B. Introducing lemon scent.

C. Making the light brighter.

D. Using plates of larger size.

3.What does the last paragraph talk about?

A. Tips to attract more customers.

B. Problems restaurants are faced with.

C. Ways to improve restaurants' reputation.

D. Common misunderstandings about restaurants.

Answer

1.A

2.A

3.D

【解析】本文为议论文。本文介绍了现代餐馆刺激消费和食欲的几种方法，以及人们对餐厅的一些错误看法。

1.词义猜测题。根据文章第三段划线部分的前句they couldn't tell how much they'd had: those given extra-large shares ate more than everyone else,可知，在黑暗中，他们说不清自己吃了多少，再根据划线后的句子they didn’t feel fuller, and they were just as ready for dessert.可知，他们虽然吃得很多，但并没有感觉更饱，仍然在等着吃甜点，所以他们没有意识到自己吃多了，故A正确。

2.细节理解题。根据第四段中的One way to encourage customers to stay and order that extra round: put on some Mozart(莫扎特）可知，要想让客人呆的时间更长应该播放莫扎特等古典音乐而不是流行音乐。Particular scents also have an effect: diners who got the scent of lavender(薰衣草）stayed longer and spent more than those who smelled lemon, or no scent.引入薰衣草香而不是柠檬香，而D项文章没有提及，所以用排除方法可以选A。

3.主旨大意题。根据文章最后一段第一句Meanwhile, things that you might expect to discourage spending—"bad" tables, crowding，high prices — don't necessarily.可知，你认为可能会影响人们消费的因素如：不好的桌子，拥挤以及高价等不一定会真影响人们的消费，然后依次举例进行了证明，所以本段主要讲的是人们对于饭店的几个误解，故选D。