Examining traditional restaurant diners’ intention: An application of the VBN theory

Prior research has demonstrated the significance of traditional food in the marketplace. However, there is a lack of studies that elucidate the consumer behavior of traditional restaurant patrons, particularly local residents. By utilizing the value-belief-norm (VBN) theory, the current study develops a consumer behavior model to enhance our understanding of the effect of consumers’ attitudes toward traditional restaurants. To this end, the study examines the structural relationships among traditional values, beliefs, social norms, personal norms, and purchase intention. The results show that individuals’ value of cherishing traditional culture has a significant effect on their purchase intention through beliefs and norms. In addition, we find that age and gender serve as partial moderators. The results of this study provide traditional restaurateurs with insights for developing effective marketing strategies to attract and retain local customers.     

The roles of attitude,subjective norm,and perceived behavioral control in the formation of consumers’ behavioral intentions to read menu labels in the restaurant industry

Increases in food-away-from-home purchases brought public awareness to policies for improving nutritional value of foods served at restaurants. As a result, offering choices to consumers that affect health and wellness has become a growing concern in the food industry and restaurants, as evidenced by provisions for nutritional labeling to guide consumers’ food purchasing decisions for healthy eating. This study pursues an empirical examination of the consumers’ behavior toward reading nutritional labeling at casual-dining restaurants. The study tests the conceptual framework of the proposed effects of constructs on consumers’ behavioral intentions. Findings indicate that the variable of attitude acts as a mediator in the relationship between subjective norm and behavioral intention. This study is meaningful to academia by offering insights into the relationship between consumers’ behavior and nutritional information in the context of restaurants and is beneficial to the restaurant industry by offering implications for establishing marketing strategies to improve consumers’ perceptions of menu items.     

Developing green management standards for restaurants: An application of green supply chain management

Hospitality businesses influence the sustainability of their natural environment by consuming significant amounts of natural resources. However, research on applying green supply chain management (GrSCM) with process of food production to construct green management indicators for restaurants is lacking. This study thus establishes a green management standard with GrSCM that green restaurants can implement. This study combines GrSCM and food and beverage management to develop green restaurant standards, and primarily adopts the Delphi Technique to develop green standards of restaurant management. A total of 23 experts from government, industry, and academia were invited to participate. The results show that green restaurant management standards comprise three facets (green foods; green environment and equipment; and green management and social responsibility), nine sub-facets, and 81 indicators: besides five indicators for the new established restaurant, the remaining 76 were standards for existing restaurants in Taiwan. In addition to its practical implications, an important contribution of this study is its application of GrSCM to establish a green management standard for restaurants.     

The chain of effects from authenticity cues to purchase intention: The role of emotions and restaurant image

The current study aimed to address the lack of studies on consumers’ perceived authenticity of traditional restaurants. Specifically, this study examined the antecedents of perceived authenticity by focusing on three restaurant attributes (i.e., authenticator, ownership type, and history). Additionally, by utilizing cognitive appraisal theory, the current study developed an authenticity model to enhance our understanding of the effect of perceived authenticity on consumer behavior. The results show that authentication by local people and chain ownership significantly enhance consumers’ perceived authenticity. Moreover, consumers’ perceived authenticity influences their purchase intention both directly and indirectly through restaurant image and positive emotion. This study’s findings provide traditional restaurateurs with insights into how to enhance perceived authenticity and purchase intention.     

How and why restaurant patrons value locally sourced foods and ingredients

As research into local foods has advanced, focus has shifted toward the antecedents that may better explain and predict attitudes and behaviors toward local foods. An expanded nomological network is proposed that integrates new and existing constructs in a means-end chain series of relationships. Relationships are empirically tested with multidimensional operationalizations of focal constructs, fielded in a consumer survey, and analyzed through structural equation modeling. Results demonstrate non-random, systematic patterns of relationships across personal values restaurant patrons hold, benefits they derive from local foods, how they actually define local foods, and their attitudes toward local foods. Contributions to marketing theory include the integration of new constructs with existing theory to establish new relationships that better explain and predict local foods perceptions and attitudes. Important considerations for the marketing of local foods include rethinking the scope of what constitutes local foods, options for positioning local foods, and implications for messaging and design.     

Restaurant Authenticity: Factors That Influence Perception,Satisfaction and Return Intentions at Regional American-Style Restaurants

This study assessed perceptions of authenticity and its relationship with satisfaction and return intentions for regional American-style restaurants using randomly selected customers at a Southern-style country-cooking restaurant. Results showed that personal and restaurant attributes influenced perceived restaurant authenticity, with a restaurant’s food and beverage and local community marketing having the strongest influences. Results also showed that perceived authenticity influences restaurant satisfaction and return intentions. Findings suggest restaurants should ensure their food and beverage meets customers’ authenticity standards and that they should promote their community connections in order to enhance diner loyalty and return patronage. Implications are discussed in detail.     

Consumer perceptions of the Michelin Guide and attitudes toward Michelin-starred restaurants

The Michelin Guide (MG) review is considered the most authoritative indicator in the global gastronomy industry. However, academic studies on restaurant reviews are mostly qualitative and interview based. This quantitative study attempted to fill the research gap in understanding consumers’ attitudes toward the MG and Michelin-starred restaurants (MSRs). We used the source credibility model as a theoretical foundation. The results showed that consumers’ perceptions of MG had a positive impact on their attitudes toward MG and a negative impact on their perceived risk of MSRs. Perceived risk did not significantly affect their attitudes toward MSRs. Furthermore, their attitudes toward MSRs had a stronger impact on purchase intentions than did their attitudes toward MG. This study has significant implications for the restaurant industry and seeks to inspire further academic research on restaurant reviews.     

Does offering an organic food menu help restaurants excel in competition? An examination of diners’ decision-making

This study aims to examine whether the presence of an organic food menu can positively influence diners’ decision-making. A 3 (restaurant segment: quick service vs. casual dining vs. fine dining) by 2 (price discrepancy between competing restaurants: small vs. large) scenario-based experiment was conducted with 405 U.S. consumers. MANCOVA results indicate that using organic ingredients offers a greater advantage for the quick-service segment regarding perceived food quality, attitudes towards the restaurant, and willingness to select, compared to casual and fine dining segments. The magnitude of a premium price of organic ingredients negatively influences such advantage in the process of consumers’ decision-making. When a large (vs. small) premium price is charged for using organic ingredients, customers’ preferences for the restaurant (over its rival) significantly drops to such an extent that customers are more willing to choose the competitor (i.e., rival restaurant with a conventional menu). Discussions and implications are further elaborated.     

The effect of brand popularity statements on consumers’ purchase intentions: The role of instrumental attitudes toward the act

Marketers increasingly use brand popularity statements in attempts to influence consumers’ purchase decisions. Through the use of two experiments this research finds that a brand's popularity statement exerts a greater positive influence on the purchase intentions of consumers who possess less favorable instrumental attitudes toward the associated act (i.e. useless/foolish/harmful) than on purchase intentions of those consumers who have more favorable instrumental attitudes toward the act (i.e. useful/wise/beneficial). Further, this research also finds that a popularity statement for a brand of which society generally has a less favorable instrumental attitude toward the associated act (e.g. fast food consumption) has a larger positive influence on consumers’ purchase intent than does a popularity statement for a brand of which society generally has a more favorable instrumental attitude toward the associated act (e.g. dining at a casual theme restaurant). These findings suggest that brand popularity statements should be targeted at those consumers who might possess less favorable attitude toward the associated act or can be most effective in sectors in which consumer sentiment is generally low (e.g. the fast food sector).     

Understanding responses to posted restaurant food safety scores: An information processing and regulatory focus perspective

Ensuring the safety of food served in restaurants continues to be an essential issue in the hospitality industry. An important part of the efforts to stem the outbreak of foodborne illnesses are the mandatory inspections of any entity that serves food to the public. Unfortunately, while posting food safety scores is intended to help consumers make better dining choices, interpreting these scores can often be difficult and confusing. The purpose of this study is to use information processing theory as a framework to investigate how consumers evaluate food safety inspection scores. To achieve this goal, this research provides an account of the effect of food safety concern on consumers’ attitudes toward restaurants under conditions of both positive and negative health inspection results. The results identify a moderating effect of health score in the formation of consumers’ attitudes toward restaurants. The downstream effects on expected satisfaction and behaviors are also established.     

Characterizing non-chain restaurants’ Yelp star-ratings: Generalizable findings from a representative sample of Yelp reviews

Previous research has established the importance of positive Yelp reviews for the success of independent, non-chain restaurant. While managers may assume that increasing customer satisfaction will increase star rating, previous research on determinants of satisfaction does not necessarily generalize to Yelp reviews or across Yelp star ratings. Accordingly, we used Multiple Correspondence Analysis with a representative sample of 54,000 reviews to investigate the criteria used by reviewers in their assignment of star-ratings to determine if different star-ratings are characterized by different criteria. Our findings confirm previous research showing the importance of service, food, and environment, but suggest these criteria matter differently at different star ratings. Based on these results, we offer suggestions for improving restaurants’ star-ratings: for 1 and 2-star restaurants, avoid long waits, for 3-star restaurants, focus on improving food quality, for 4 and 5-star restaurants, focus on creating a positive overall experience through service, food, and environmental factors.     

Understanding the relationship between food experiential quality and customer dining satisfaction: A perspective on negative bias

This research explores how food experiential quality of consumers affects their overall dining satisfaction. Drawing on negative bias theory, we propose a nonlinear relationship between food experiential quality and customer dining satisfaction. Moreover, we investigate how restaurant price moderates the nonlinear relationship between food experiential quality and customer dining satisfaction. Results of the threshold model using 10,950 online reviews of 219 restaurants on Dianping.com provide support for the proposed hypotheses. The results suggest that a curvilinear relationship is found between food experiential quality dining satisfaction, and the turning points of nonlinear returns decreases for restaurants that belong to high-priced groups. Theoretically, our findings contribute to the existing literature by considering the nonlinear effect of food experiential quality on customer dining satisfaction in the hospitality area through the lens of negative bias, as well as considering the boundary condition. Practically, our findings suggest that restaurant managements can improve customer dining satisfaction through focusing on the food experiential quality of their customers and enhancing their response to customers who have low-level food experiential quality. In addition, if the restaurant price is high, restaurant managers should provide high-level of food experiential quality.     

The effect of psychological empowerment climate on restaurant food safety,food quality,and financial performance

ABSTRACT

Consumer food safety incidences that result from employee accidents and behaviors can be detrimental and costly to a restaurant organization. Restaurant organizations and hospitality researchers have sought multiple methods of increasing food safety performance through training and intervention, but this study suggests that shared agreement of psychological empowerment may be a key factor in improving food safety performance, and in turn, food quality and store revenues. Using data from a national chain of quick service restaurants, this study used groups of restaurant employees’ psychological empowerment as an antecedent to food safety performance, measured in a food safety audit, and found significant support. Moreover, using consumer evaluations of food quality and the organization's store revenue records, indirect and direct relationships among psychological empowerment, food safety performance, food quality, and revenues were found. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

Benefits and transaction costs of purchasing local foods in school districts

Although there are several benefits associated with the consumption and increased awareness of locally grown foods in school districts, there are also costs that prevent increasing the purchase of local foods. This study examined the main benefits and transaction costs perceived by school foodservice directors in a Northeastern State when purchasing local foods. Qualitative semi-structured interviews with school districts’ foodservice directors (N = 11) were conducted. The main criteria for participation was to target school districts who previously or currently purchased locally grown food items. The study showed that school foodservice directors categorized price, food safety and availability as the main components of transaction costs associated with the purchase of locally grown products. They also identified several benefits, such as supporting the local economy, providing better quality food, and ensuring students have access to healthier foods. Future studies could build on these findings to identify specific measures of transaction costs.     

The effects of teppanyaki restaurant stimuli on diners’ emotions and loyalty

This research examines the influence of restaurant stimuli (i.e., chefs, service staff, other customers, food quality, and atmospherics) on diners’ emotions and loyalty to teppanyaki restaurants. In teppanyaki restaurants, chefs take orders from diners, prepare food in front of diners, and serve dishes to diners. Although the importance of chefs has been acknowledged by scholars, empirical research on the influence of chefs on diners has been scarce. To augment the literature on how chefs influence diners, this research incorporates “chef’s image” into an extended Mehrabian-Russell model (M-R model) to conceptualize diner loyalty to teppanyaki restaurants. A total of 308 diners from Taiwan were recruited. After examining their completed questionnaires, this study found that chef’s image, service quality, and food quality can affect the positive and negative emotions of diners. Moreover, other diners and restaurant atmospherics affect only the negative emotions of diners. Both positive and negative emotions can affect diner loyalty to teppanyaki restaurants. In addition, the managerial implications of this study are discussed.     

The financial impact of online customer reviews in the restaurant industry: A moderating effect of brand equity

The salient impact of electronic Word-of-Mouth (eWOM) on firm performance has been widely noticed by scholars and practitioners. While eWOM serves as an important source of information that helps reduce perceived uncertainty risks in service purchases, it is highly likely that other sources of information are simultaneously used with eWOM in the purchase decisions. Thus, this study empirically examined the financial effects of restaurant eWOM (review volume and review rating) and their changes in the presence of brand equity. Three-stage least squares analysis was employed in the empirical investigation. Our findings revealed that review volume and review rating contributed to restaurant profitability. Brand equity was found to moderate the effects of the review attributes on restaurants profitability, which implies that eWOM has a greater influence on the financial performance of weak-branded restaurants than strong-branded ones. Implications for researchers and practitioners are discussed.     

American theme restaurants: A study of consumer's perceptions of the important attributes in restaurant selection

In recent years, a number of American theme restaurants have established in Hong Kong. Keen competition exists for this type of restaurants. Customers who visit this type of restaurant seem not only to enjoy their food but also to enjoy their environment. However, little is known about what customers expect and how they select this type of restaurant. In order to have an understanding of customers’ behaviour in relation to the customers’ perceptions of important restaurant attributes in selecting an American theme restaurant in Hong Kong, a study was conducted. The results indicated that ‘Food quality’, ‘Servers’ attitude’, ‘Value for money’, ‘Atmosphere’ and ‘Word‐of‐mouth’ were the five important restaurant dimensions as considered by consumers in selecting an American theme restaurant. Customers for this type of restaurant are likely to be professionals, highly educated and belong to the middle‐income group in the society. Customers usually go to the American theme restaurants for meetings, fun and enjoyment. Marketing implications and directions for future studies are discussed.     

Effects of message framing on food allergy communication: A cross-sectional study of restaurant customers with food allergies

The prevention of allergy reactions to food requires communication between individuals with food allergies and restaurant employees. This study investigated the effectiveness of framed messages (gain-framed versus loss-framed) in encouraging food allergy communication and explored factors that influenced customers’ intentions to communicate with restaurant staff about their food allergies. A total of 291 valid survey responses were collected. Approximately 70% of the participants had experienced food allergy reactions in restaurants, but less than 15% of them could always communicate with restaurant employees before placing food orders. Overall, participants perceived dining out as somehow risky. Gain-framed messages were more persuasive than loss-framed messages in encouraging food allergy communication. Fear, attitudes toward the messages, the perceived effectiveness of the messages, and the severity of one’s food allergies were significant predictors of customers’ intentions to communicate. Customers’ attitudes toward the messages mediated the relationship between message format and the behavioral intention to communicate.