Krasota: A Culinary Experience in Dubai That Redefines Dining
At the dining table, alongside enjoying delicious dishes, guests will witness recipes presented through artificial intelligence (AI). This is one of the eight experiences about “Imagined Futures”, related to multisensory dining at Krasota restaurant.
A harmonious space where people connect with nature during meals, featuring plant-based tacos and all-natural soda. (Rebecca Cairns/CNN).
Guests will have the opportunity to experience various future scenarios, from an underwater city to outer space destinations or a post-nuclear apocalypse, with each dish thematically fitting the context.
The co-founders of Krasota – including digital artist Anton Nenashev, chef Vladimir Mukhin, and entrepreneur Boris Zarkov – have crafted dishes that incorporate AI, transporting diners into a technological experience right at the dining table.
Mr. Nenashev created projections using 3D computer graphics software. Meanwhile, chef Mukhin has driven the Midjourney creative platform through recipe development. Midjourney is an advanced AI image generation tool that allows users to create unique and striking visuals from text descriptions. With its limitless creativity and user-friendly interface, Midjourney quickly became an essential tool for creators to integrate art into dining.
AI Dining Experience
Interactive game elements – such as space scenarios where AI-assisted projectors track guests’ hands on the table to interact with “shooting” spaceships. (Photo: Rebecca Cairns/CNN)
Mr. Zarkov, owner of the White Rabbit restaurant in Moscow (where Mukhin is also head chef and co-founder), visited the teamLabs digital art museum in Tokyo in 2017, which featured an interactive technology “tea house.”
“The projections on the table are quite simple – for instance, you drink matcha tea and simulate a plant starting to grow from your cup. From this idea, I decided to do something with technology, focusing on food,” Mr. Zarkov explained.
Gathering an international team of engineers, the Krasota co-founding team began researching multi-surface projections and AI-assisted interactive tabletops, using sensors to differentiate between various objects, such as plates and glasses versus guests’ hands or phones, allowing for targeted projections. Images of fireflies “gathering” on glasses and plates or video games triggered by guests’ hands.
Mr. Zarkov mentioned that this is the most complex and challenging technology they have created. Krasota first opened in Moscow in 2021, recalling that staff spent an entire month training the AI by continuously placing dishes on the table and moving objects to test.
“At first, the speed wasn’t very fast – when you moved the phone, it would take 3 seconds to respond. But AI uses machine learning to improve when it receives new information. Now you can interact with any image on the table,” Mr. Zarkov added.
Notably, Krasota Dubai opened in 2023 with a “Imagined Art” program, taking diners through eight special moments inspired by famous works from various international artists. Six months later, the research team launched “Imagined Futures” at the dining table with a journey around the world, speculating on the next decade.
Mr. Zarkov stated that adjusting the pace of the program appropriately is challenging. It’s crucial to coordinate smoothly between the visuals and the food. If you focus too much on the screen, the food won’t seem appetizing.
This experience aims to capture diners’ attention: the most interesting and dynamic visuals occur during breaks between courses, but as soon as the food is served, the graphics become repetitive and passive to allow guests to concentrate on the delicious dishes.
Interactive elements only appear when the plates are cleared and in unforeseen circumstances encountered during meals at the restaurant.
Whether it’s the food or the screen, Mr. Zarkov hopes visitors understand that: “art is very important. We want diners to feel that.”
“Sound Spice”
Custom ceramic plates and cutlery styled like shells and crab claws at Krasota enhance the underwater dining experience. (Photo: Rebecca Cairns/CNN)
Technology at the dining table is not a completely new concept. In 2007, Heston Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck restaurant in the UK introduced “The Sound of the Sea” with its famous sashimi dish – featuring sound effects mimicking gentle waves lapping at the beach and seagull calls.
Professor Charles Spence, an experimental psychology professor at the University of Oxford, stated that this is one of the first technology-assisted multisensory dishes in the world. He has spent two decades exploring how auditory and visual stimuli can alter the taste of food – or at least the perception of sound.
For instance, classical music while dining makes the food feel more valuable, and music that matches the cuisine enhances the perception of authenticity. Italian songs are believed to pair well with pasta or pizza – increasing the awareness of authenticity.
In one experiment, Professor Spence noted that participants rated the same type of wine as sweeter when accompanied by red lighting, while a blue light effect made the wine feel fresher and more acidic.
He added that even the pitch of the music can influence taste: lower frequency sounds make beverages taste more bitter, while higher notes provide a sweet sensation.
“More and more chefs want to introduce this sound spice to change the flavors of dishes. And an increasing number of consumers are eager to explore the surprising connections between different senses while enjoying a meal,” Professor Spence added.
Technology is becoming more prevalent in multisensory experiences. Restaurants like Zenon, also in Dubai, have employed “AI-generated art installations” to transform the dining atmosphere, creating a special and artistic meal.
