Beyond Ethnic Dining Experience: The Humanizing Factor

Abstract

Ethnic restaurants play a crucial role in the hospitality industry as they preserve and bridge the rich cultural heritage of the past with the evolving demands of current and future customers. This study identified key elements that shape the dining experience, providing valuable new insights. This research aims to analyze the role of ethnic food authenticity and customer interaction as antecedents of the ethnic dining experience as well as their impact on customer delight in ethnic restaurants. This study is a quantitative survey utilizing cross-sectional data gathered through the purposive distribution of questionnaires. A total of 428 samples were collected from three types of ethnic restaurants, specifically those with Sundanese, Balinese, and Padang backgrounds. SmartPls was used for the statistical analysis, which followed the PLS-SEM method. The findings of the research confirmed that three hypotheses were supported (p-value < 0.05, CI 95%). The strongest influence was from customer interaction (0.465), followed closely by ethnic food authenticity (0.462). In terms of consumer experience, the ethnic dining experience demonstrated a strong mediating role and direct influence on customer delight (0.871). These results align with previous studies, indicating that customer delight can be predicted and explained adequately (R² = 0.759; Q²_predict = 0.696). These findings offer valuable insights for ethnic restaurant managers in their marketing efforts to retain customers and encourage repeat visits. Managers should also carefully consider the layout and spacing of tables to ensure customer comfort and facilitate interaction with dining companions. A limitation of this study is its focus on restaurants in major cities. To generalize the findings, future research should include samples from ethnic restaurants in tourist destinations where culinary tourism is significant.