There’s an ongoing debate in my community that happens in every town the world over: which Mexican/burger/pizza/sandwich/chicken/or whatever restaurant serves the best food? The question often pops up on social media and people aren’t shy about making their thoughts known about their favorite Mexican/burger/pizza/sandwich/chicken/or whatever dining establishment preference.

It can be fun to chip in your own two cents on the matter, but the question begs: what makes a particular restaurant’s food better than another’s?

Extreme cases of health code violations and unsanitary cooking practices aside, is there really a way to prove that Restaurant X’s food is better than Restaurant Y’s? Perhaps on a personal level, but when it comes to food, classifying a particular restaurant’s food as the best is too subjective to apply across the board. Or is it?

According to ChefsBest, a food industry taste research organization, the notion that food taste is subjective is a myth. The organization bases its argument on research that finds taste, smell, and texture as the top three components that appeal to grocery shoppers and restaurant goers when it comes to food. Good taste, smell, and texture are things, ChefsBest argues, that research can find through panels and test groups. After identifying what’s good, ChefsBest claims, restaurants can create menus that customers are likely to enjoy.

That is true to an extent, but what about the panel and test group members? Aren’t they going to have varying interpretations of what’s good food and what isn’t?

Let’s delve further into the matter.

Research on food consumption preferences has established that appearance, aroma, flavor, texture, and amounts of the five basic tastes (sweet, bitter, sour, savory, and umami) work together to influence the food consumer’s dining experience.

This is where subjectivity comes into play. Let’s say Johnny’s taste palette responds well to savory food, like roast beef and gravy, while Susie’s palette prefers sour and sweet food, like sweet and sour pork. Due to his taste preference, Johnny is more likely to favor Restaurant Z, which specializes in meat, than Susie will. Likewise, Susie will prefer dining at Restaurant A because of its specialization for producing sweet and sour dishes.

This accounts for different types of cuisines, but what about those who prefer or enjoy the same type of cuisine, like Mexican, for example? What makes Tacos by Johnny better than Casa de Susie, which have the same basic menus? Preference, a subjective matter. But where’s the fun in accepting that fact?

If everyone acknowledged that food taste is subjective, there’d be no need to argue that Tacos by Johnny is a better choice for Mexican dining than Casa de Susie.

Finding a clear-cut answer on how to decide the best restaurant for any type of food never happens, but what is sure is that if there are enough people who find a particular restaurant’s food good, the restaurant can expect to thrive.

So go ahead and offer your opinion when asked for a dining suggestion. Just remember that there’s only a 50-50 chance that the person receiving the advice is going to agree with your assessment.