Attitudes of Korean College Students Towards Quick-Service,Family-Style,and Fine Dining Restaurants

Abstract

A research instrument was developed to identify attitudes of Korean college students towards quick-service, family-style, and fine dining restaurants. Of the 350 questionnaires distributed, 292 (83%) were returned and usable. Respondents had the most positive attitudes toward fine dining restaurants, followed by quick service and family-style restaurants. Family-style restaurants, however, were most frequently patronized by respondents for their regular meals. “Good taste” was found to be the determining factor in selecting a restaurant for regular meals among Korean college students. Implications for Korean restaurant operators, researchers, and restaurant operators in other countries were provided.     

国际商务旅游活动中对中国式餐饮的需求解读

食品安全是国际商务旅游人士最基本的需求,由于目前中国式餐饮的食品安全问题还存在很多问题,导致国外旅游商务人士在中国就餐时对食品卫生安全的心理需求非常强烈。中国餐饮业应高度重视这一问题,注意食材产地、餐厅环境、餐具及食品加工卫生以及从业人员的素质;在接待服务中要努力满足国外游客的国际社交需要,尊重其国际礼仪和风俗;提供舒适的用餐环境,树立良好食品形象,满足其审美需求以及相对更高层次的需求,使之感受到在中国用餐是一种享受,以吸引和留住客源,增加餐饮业的竞争力。     

A Thirst for the Real Thing in Themed Retail Environments

ABSTRACT

The restaurant industry is experiencing a trend toward “authentic” ethnic restaurants that promise not only authentic food from a specific culture, but also an authentic dining experience and decor. For many consumers, these ethnic dining experiences constitute their sole contact with foreign cultures. This paper explores the importance of authenticity in ethnicthemed restaurants. It considers the methods employed and the frames of reference used to create these themed environments, consumers' abilities to delineate the real from the fake and the importance of authenticity as a component of the consumption experience. This exploratory study used qualitative research methods to report emerging themes derived from one type of ethnic restaurant, Irish pubs in Savannah, Georgia during St. Patrick's Day festivities. Managerial and research implications are offered.     

Consumers’ perception of reduced calorie meals: How low is “Low-Calorie”?

ABSTRACT

With consumers becoming increasingly health conscious, the demand for reduced calorie food has significantly increased over the years. However, the definition of low-calorie food remains unclear. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate consumers’ perception of reduced calorie meals, from the perspective of the maximum calorie level that consumers would consider as “low-calorie.” Survey data were collected using MTurk. In addition to respondents’ perception of the calorie count of low-calorie food when eating out and eating at home, respondents’ attitude toward low-calorie food, behaviors about consuming low-calorie food and exercise frequency, and demographic information were also assessed in the survey. The results demonstrate that consumers’ calorie perception of low-calorie food served in restaurants is consistent among different types of restaurants. Moreover, consumers believe that a low-calorie meal served in restaurants should be under 367 calories for breakfast, 500 calories for lunch, and 677 calories for dinner. Lastly, consumers perceive home-cooked meals to be lower in calories than restaurant food. This study is the first attempt to explore consumers’ definition of a low-calorie meal served in restaurants. The findings will provide guidance to restaurant operators in designing menus, and help policymakers better understand the ongoing need to develop a sound and comprehensive definition for the term “low-calorie.”     

An investigation of restaurant food safety performance: A comparison between ethnic and nonethnic and chain and independent restaurants in Louisiana

This study examines health inspection data from casual dining restaurants and compares differences of food code violations between ethnic and nonethnic restaurants. A total of 7,415 violations were retrieved from the restaurant inspection reports of 769 restaurants. Ethnic restaurants have more violations than nonethnic restaurant in categories related to food time/temperature violations, cross contamination, and food condition/surface/labels. Nonethnic and chain restaurants had fewer behavioral violations than ethnic and independently operated restaurants. Ethnic restaurants were 1.74 times more likely than nonethnic restaurants to have critical violations. Meanwhile, independent restaurants were 1.64 times more likely than chain restaurants to have critical violations.     

Understanding How the Web Works!

ABSTRACT

Creating dining environments that make customers feel comfortable is a key goal of restaurant designers and operators. By applying basic precepts of environmental psychology to restaurant seating configurations, foodservice managers may be able to enhance the guest experience without sacrificing operational efficiency. This paper reviews the environmental psychology literature related to seating behavior, and analyzes the designs of ten representative chain restaurants to determine if these psychological principles appear to be supported in a successful foodservice operation. It also examines the seating behavior of different cultures, and suggests approaches to foodservice design that may appeal to an international market. While environmental psychology literature rarely addresses foodservice environments directly, many of its findings can be applied to restaurant settings. An analysis of the floor plans of five quick service restaurants and five table service restaurants outlines how some operations have provided seating configurations that assist customers in defending personal territory. Research that examines seating behavior in a wide range of foodservice settings and across cultural groups would be a valuable addition to the literature while providing foodservice managers and designers with excellent data for making seating layout decisions.     

A Study of Factors Affecting Tip Size in Restaurants

Abstract

This study was undertaken to gain understanding of the tipping phenomenon in restaurants. The study reviews the phenomenon of tipping and the accompanying characteristics that determine the gratuity amount of consumers. An understanding of the relationship between tip size and factors such as food quality and level of service will help to determine what areas restaurant personnel should focus on to enhance customer satisfaction and facilitate those working in the restaurant industry. In this study, the researchers tested the hypothesis that the greater the tip size, the more satisfied the customer is with the food quality and service provided by server. The other hypothesis tested was: The greater the tip size, the greater the likelihood of a return patronage. Data were collected at a restaurant in Houston, Texas. This analysis found a strong relationship between tip size and service provided by server and return intentions, but did not find a significant relationship between tip size and food quality.     

The Effects of Coupon Promotion on Repeat Visits in Restaurants

Abstract

Will customers' intention to return to a restaurant increase with coupon promotion? To answer this question, this study examines the hypothetical effects of coupon promotion on return visits to restaurants. Based on a literature review, three hypotheses were developed to test the effect of a coupon, its face value, and a patron's prior dining experience on return intention. The authors found that neither coupon use nor coupon face value contributed to explaining respondents' return intentions. However, repeat customers have a greater likelihood of returning to the restaurant than new customers. The study also showed that the quality of food and service were key indicators of return intention.     

Restaurant Patronage and the Ethnic Groups in Singapore

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to assess the restaurant patronage practices (food habits) of three major ethnic groups (Chinese, Malays, and Indians) of Singapore. A total of 390 questionnaires were distributed. In spite of major cultural, socio-economic and religious differences, the three ethnic groups have common food habits while eating out. Eating at theme restaurants is not popular across the three ethnic groups. Among the ethnic groups under consideration, the food habits while eating out differed from the food habits of those groups while eating at home. The study indicated that all three ethnic groups eat out regularly. Chinese patronize quick service restaurants more frequently than the other ethnic groups. Chinese and Indians patronize “Hawker centers” more often than the Malays. Perception of nutrition and gender has very little affect on food habits while eating out. The obtained results partially supported the Barker's model.     

Understanding Mature Customers in the Restaurant Business

Summary

The study reported here examined die differences between intangible service experiences of mature and younger customers in quick-service, casual, and fine-dining restaurants. The authors used ten unpleasant service experiences to identify the significant experiences that can impede satisfaction in three types of restaurants. No unpleasant service experiences were significant for either mature or young customers. However, in the casual dining restaurants, the (1) lack of product knowledge and (2) inattentive servers created significantly unpleasant service experiences for mature customers. In the quick service restaurant, the (1) lack of product knowledge, (2) inattentive servers, (3) rudeness, and (4) lack of cleanliness produced significantly unpleasant service experiences which in turn impeded the satisfaction for the mature customer. The reasons for these findings are discussed, and the authors suggest that the restaurant industry pay more attention to the mature population in order to increase both customer satisfaction levels and profits. A literature review precedes a discussion of the characteristics and service requirements of mature restaurant customers.     

A Study of Factors Influencing Parental Patronage of Quick Service Restaurants

Summary

This study identified factors influencing parental quick service restaurant patronage. Results indicated that parents are influenced to patronize quick service restaurants most often by speed of service, menus that offered their childrens' favorite food items, and parents' lack of time for meal preparation at home. Children preferred French fries, pizza, hamburgers, cheeseburgers, and chicken nuggets at quick service restaurants. French fries, the favorite childrens' fast food menu selection, was ranked by respondents as one of the least healthy food items, while mashed potatoes, one of childrens' least favorite fast food menu selections, was perceived to be one of the healthier food selections by parents. Restaurateurs were encouraged to develop newer, healthier methods of preparing these popular menu items while offering more nutritious menu selections for children.     

Influence of Social Acceptability and Attitudes in Restaurant Beef Consumption

ABSTRACT

The competition for meeting consumer preferences for beef steak in the casual dining restaurant is increasing. In order to better understand these preferences researchers employed Sapp's expanded rational expectations intention model, a depiction of Ajzen and Fishbein's theory of reasoned action, to investigate consumers' intentions to consume beef steak in the casual dining restaurant. The expanded model added the social acceptability construct to Ajzen and Fishbein's rational expectations model. Social acceptability had significant causal path estimates for attitude, intention, and subjective norm. Additionally, researchers looked at possible gender differences in the social acceptability, attitude, and behavioral intention constructs. The path estimate between social acceptability and behavioral intention was significant for females but not for males. The attitude to behavioral intention causal path was the strongest path for both males and females; however, neither gender differed in the amount of weight placed on this causal path. The results of this study may assist the beef and restaurant industry to more effectively compete for market share by meeting consumer preferences for beef steak in the casual dining environment.     

Japanese cuisine in Poland: attitudes and behaviour among Polish consumers

In Poland, in recent years, the number of Japanese cuisine restaurants is still increasing. The aim of this article was to estimate the popularity of Japanese cuisine in Poland and to examine attitudes of Polish consumers towards it. The reasons why this cuisine is chosen by consumers are also studied. The scope of this work includes two anonymous questionnaires. The first study was conducted in Warsaw among 527 random respondents to estimate the level of familiarity with Japanese dishes. The second one was conducted among 115 consumers of a particular Japanese restaurant in Warsaw. Research of the target group was aimed at the characteristics of Japanese dishes consumers. On the basis of the results, it was found that random respondents have relatively little knowledge of Japanese dishes. However, a large percentage of them declared interest in Japanese culture and traditions and was inclined to taste the dishes of this region. Japanese restaurants are mainly popular among young people who follow current culinary trends and fashions and also care about their diet. High prices limit the customer group to well‐off people. Polish consumers visiting Japanese restaurants are usually persons between 31 and 40 years old, with higher education, live in the big cities, as well as with very good or good financial situation. Regular restaurant goers eat out quite often: once a week (38%) or at least once a month (27%). The restaurant studied is mainly visited by people familiar with Japanese cuisine. Sushi is the most popular of the dishes offered.     

The Challenges That Face Restaurants in Attracting and Meeting the Needs of the Mature Customer

Abstract

The physiological and psychological changes that older customers experience demand a more sedulous look by restaurants in order to better understand the wants and needs of this consumer. This paper discusses factors that affect appetite and nutrition of older customers and obstacles that inhibit their restaurant patronage. The paper provides ways of addressing these issues to attract this segment of the population and increase the quality of their dining experience.     

Consumer Preferences for Locally Produced Food Ingredient Sourcing in Restaurants

Increasing restaurant supply chain participants’ knowledge of consumer preferences toward the use of locally produced ingredients in restaurants may provide insight into a valuable marketing opportunity. This study uses conjoint analysis to evaluate consumers’ locally produced ingredient preferences relative to two other key restaurant attributes (the price of the dining experience and restaurant type). Results suggest that, for one fifth of surveyed restaurant consumers, a restaurant’s practice of “buying locally” is the primary restaurant attribute of importance. The implications of these results for supply chain providers (e.g., producers, manufacturers, and food service distributors) are discussed.     

The Impact of Coupons on Service Quality Evaluations,Risk, and Purchase Intentions

Abstract

To attract customers, restaurants will often use coupons. This research examined the impact of a promotional coupon on service quality expectations, perceived purchase risk and purchase intentions. It was found that the use of coupons does increase purchase intentions and reduce perceived purchase risk. However, coupons were found to negatively influence service quality expectations. Implications of these findings for restaurant managers are discussed.     

Assessment of the environmental sustainability of restaurants in the U.S.: The effects of restaurant characteristics on environmental sustainability performance

ABSTRACT

This paper investigated the current levels of environmental sustainability in restaurants across the U.S. to determine whether a restaurant’s proclivity for environmental sustainability depended on its characteristics such as chain affiliation or restaurant type.

A web-based survey was administered to 2,500 top-level restaurant managers, from which a total of 218 responses were judged as usable. The data were analyzed using independent

sample t-tests and ANOVA. This study presents an in-depth account of the environmental sustainability in restaurants across the U.S. based on an evaluation of top-level managers. This study also highlights the differences in restaurant environmental sustainability across different restaurant segments.     

The Michelin Guide and Restaurant Pricing Strategies

Abstract

This study reports the analysis of the price changes that occurred among randomly chosen French restaurants during the period of 1970–94. It discussed the relationship between these changes and the Michelin Guide restaurant ratings. The findings suggest that when the Michelin ratings increase or decrease for a particular restaurant, its prices reflect this change. Even two years before receiving a Michelin promotion, restaurants are observed to increase their prices relative to other restaurants. Most likely this is due to their incurring the extra expense of raising the quality of their fare and improving their amenities in the hope of qualifying for an increased Michelin rating.     

An Exploratory Comparison of the Casual Dining Experience

Abstract

Chain restaurants in the United States now represent the majority of dollars spent in terms of overall sales when compared to independent restaurants. As a result, independents struggle to remain competitive in the marketplace. This paper reports the findings of an exploratory study that was conducted to compare consumer perceptions toward the casual dining experience between chain and independent restaurants. The results clearly show consumers view dining experiences at chain units more favorably than dining experiences at independent units. Food quality has the greatest impact on satisfaction levels in terms of chain restaurants, whereas, server responsiveness is the driving force behind satisfaction as it relates to independent restaurants.