International tourists’ Choices and satisfaction of small restaurants in thailand: the influence of food safety indicators

Yasami, Mehri Phetvaroon Kullada Zhu Hongrui

Travelers’ increasing concern about restaurant-associated foodborne illness makes food safety very important to destination foodservice operators. While previous research has shed light on the impact of destination different restaurant service quality attributes on tourists’ satisfaction, there is a lack of research identifying the dimensions of food safety indicators driving tourist’s restaurant selection and satisfaction solely. This study aims to fill the gaps by developing a scale measuring 433 international tourists’ perceptions about hygiene standards in Phuket small restaurants. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a four-factor model that influences tourists’ restaurant selection. These factors were: waitstaff’s appearance and personal hygiene, cleanliness of restaurant, toilet hygiene, and food safety information cues. Cleanliness of restaurant and waitstaff’s appearances and personal hygiene were two key factors influencing tourist satisfaction of small restaurants. The significance of restaurant hygiene quality has received less attention in tourism marketing literature, thus this study adds further importance by underlining its implication to the sustainable management of destination restaurants. However, this study suffered from several limitations, for instance, the study’s framework, the inability to generalize the results due to the research scope and context, and the concurrence of data collection with the COVID-19 pandemic which pave the way for future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Foodservice Business Research is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)