Between gaze and taste: Senses, imaginaries, and the sustainability of culinary heritage in Greek tourist-oriented tavernes

Abstract

This article examines food tourism events in permanent tourist-oriented food venues, focusing on Greek tavernes. Drawing on ethnographic research in Greece since 2010, we explore how tourists' expectations and sensory experiences in food events influence culinary heritage and social sustainability. We employ Urry's “tourist gaze” concept, integrating it with a comprehensive analytical framework addressing tourists' and local attendees' sensory experiences in daily food events at culturally significant institutions like Greek Tavernes. Our study illuminates the dominance of tourists' expectations, preconceived imaginaries, and sensory engagements, revealing potential challenges to sustained cultural traditions and culinary heritage. While the “tourist gaze” may perpetuate static cultural dynamics, we identify “tourist (and resident) taste” as a counter-mechanism. Our findings reveal that Greek tavernes, catering to tourist expectations and evolving local taste preferences, strike a delicate balance, enhancing eventful and multisensorial experiences to preserve and develop culinary heritage and social sustainability.