An Exploratory Study: UK Customers' Motives for Visiting Korean Restaurants

Previous study has identified that important motives and attributes in restaurant selection can differ according tothe type of restaurants. The objectives of this study are (1) to identify if there are any unique motives for visitingKorean restaurants, which are different from motivational factors that people have when they go to generalrestaurants, and (2) to explore what makes UK customers choose or hesitate to go to Korean restaurants. This studyadopted a qualitative study approach, using semi-structured interviews. 21 British customers who had experiencedAsian restaurants were recruited, including both those who had been to Korean restaurants and those who had neverbeen to Korean restaurants but had been to other Asian restaurants, to compare what makes them visit other Asianrestaurants while hesitating to go to Korean restaurants. The outcome of this study identifies two motivational factorsthat influence UK customers to visit Korean restaurants: personal factors, interpersonal factors. In addition, attributesthat UK customers consider when they choose to visit Korean restaurants were also identified. The findings showedthat while there are unique motivational factors for visiting Korean restaurants compared to other general restaurantsin the UK, general restaurant selection attributes such as food quality and service are expected to be better thanBritish restaurants. In addition, it was found that Korean restaurants can serve as "cultural ambassadors" to conveyKorean cultures, since UK customers' critical motive to visit Korean restaurants is to learn about other cultures.