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Influence of age on customer dining experience factors at U.S. Japanese

restaurants

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 TOURISMOS: AN INTERNATIONAL MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF TOURISM
Volume 1, Number 2, 2006, pp. 29-43

INFLUENCE OF AGE ON CUSTOMER DINING

EXPERIENCE FACTORS AT U.S. JAPANESE
RESTAURANTS

Johnny Sue Reynolds1

University of North Texas
Jaesun Hwang
University of North Texas

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of age on customer dining
experience levels at Japanese restaurants in the United States and to determine if
there are differences in influential factors between customers of different ages
when they eat at Japanese restaurants. To address the objectives of the study,
customers who patronized Japanese restaurants were asked to rank the
importance of 20 dining experience factors. Researchers give recommendations
for restaurateurs to bridge the gap between customers of different age groups in
order to gain a competitive edge in today’s highly competitive restaurant market.

Keywords: Japanese restaurants, ethnic cuisine, Asian foods, dining

experiences, consumer, satisfaction

INTRODUCTION

The United States is continuing to become more culturally diverse.

As a result of this increase in diversity, ethnic restaurants have become
one of the hottest sectors of the food service industry over the past decade
and Asian restaurants led the U.S. sales trends in 2003 (Cobe, 2004).
Ethnic restaurants are increasing in popularity and these restaurants
usually give customers their initial introduction to foods from different
cultures. The recent immigration patterns in the U.S. can, to some extent,
explain this sudden rise in the popularity of ethnic restaurants (Hensley,
2000a). Ethnic restaurants are so numerous, that the availability and
increased familiarity with ethnic foods are making them become more
main stream (Mills, 2000; Hensley, 2000c).
As many Americans are becoming concerned about their health and,
as a result, are beginning to change their eating habits, they are

© University of the Aegean. Printed in Greece. All rights reserved. ISSN: 1234-5678

29
 Johnny Sue Reynolds & Jaesun Hwang

increasingly interested in trying new exotic types of foods (Josiam &

Monteiro, 2004) such as Japanese cuisines, which consumers generally
perceive as being healthy. Traditional Japanese foods capitalize on
healthful foods and their food products are well received due to their
wholesome and nutritious nature. Most are prepared from vegetable
products with a low fat content (Kim, 1995). Cobe (2004) found that
Asian restaurants can satisfy the top dining-out priorities of health,
freshness, and excitement.
Today’s younger restaurant customers are seeking bolder, more
exotic tastes from a variety of cultures and these consumers are leading
the revolution in ethnic cuisine dining. Generation X customers were born
between 1965 and 1976 and are now between the ages of 29 and 40.
Generation Y customers were born between 1977 and 1994 and are now
between the ages of 11 and 28 (Amour, 2005; Hensley, 2000b;
Wikipedia, 2005). Both Generation X and Y customers are adventurous
and not intimidated to try something new and different while dining out
and they tend to frequent a variety of restaurants on a regular basis. Their
baby boomer parents exposed them to ethnic cuisines at an early age
(Hensley, 2000b). These younger, upscale consumers seem to exhibit the
most interest in Japanese cuisines such as sushi and hibachi, which are
often difficult to prepare at home and require numerous, sometimes exotic
ingredients.
Conversely, older singles and married seniors are not known for
frequenting ethnic restaurants, in spite of typically being social diners
who eat out quite often. Older consumers also tend to shy away from
spicy or exotic foods, as well as newer food trends. Older consumers are
often seen as having firmly entrenched dining-out patterns. The truth is
that they have very distinctive preferences for both service and food. For
example, it would appear that acquired tastes and dining habit patterns are
carried forward as the customer ages. According to Knutson and Patton
(1993), the two strongest motivators for older adults to eat out are
convenience and companionship. At this stage in their lives, these
consumers do not want to spend a large portion of their time in the
kitchen, but they do not place importance on trying new cuisines
(Hensley, 2000a). This market segment, particularly older females,
indicates that an important reason for eating out is the escape from the
hassle of creating a meal, from grocery shopping to cooking, to cleanup.
Older diners also perceive going out to eat in a restaurant as an
opportunity to socialize in a welcoming, comfortable atmosphere, and
report that being with friends and family is another important factor in
choosing to eat out (Knutson & Patton, 1993).

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 TOURISMOS: AN INTERNATIONAL MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF TOURISM
Volume 1, Number 2, 2006, pp. 29-43

The diners at ethnic restaurants do not go there just for the food.
They also hunger for an exotic dining experience. The patrons of ethnic
restaurants are viewed as gastronomic tourists (Zeinsky, 1987). It is
important for restaurant managers to know what their customers want and
what makes them return to their restaurant. Susskind (2005) stated that
customers evaluate the fairness of their dining experience at any time
during the delivery of service. A customer who experiences slow service
or a food order that is not quite right must then determine whether or not
the overall dining experience was good, bad, and equitable.
The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of age on
customer dining experience factors at Japanese restaurants in the United
States and to determine if there are differences in factors between
customers of different ages when dining at Japanese restaurants. The
objectives of the study were to:
• determine the demographic profile of Japanese restaurant customers
in the United States;
• determine differences in dining experience factors between Japanese
restaurant customers of different ages, and to
• provide recommendations for Japanese restaurateurs to understand
the differences in dining experience factors between customers of
different age groups in order to gain a competitive edge in today’s
highly competitive restaurant market.

METHODOLOGY

This study details the results of a survey of customers from eleven

Asian restaurants located in a large metropolitan area in the southwestern
region of the United States. These restaurants were selected because of
their similarity in types of food served and price points ($10 to $20 per
person per meal). The researchers developed a questionnaire for this study
using guidelines from applied research in the areas of foodservice,
tourism, and marketing (Robledo, 2001; Suskind and Chan, 2000;
Soriano, 2002,; Yuksel, 2002). The survey instrument was comprised of
two sections. The first section asked for respondent demographic data.
The second section of the survey asked customers to rank factors of their
most recent dining experience at a Japanese restaurant using a five-point
Likert scale (range: 1 = Strongly disagree to 5 = Strongly agree). The
dining experience factors were categorized into five themes: service
quality, food quality, menu quality, convenience/ambiance, price and
value.

31
 Johnny Sue Reynolds & Jaesun Hwang

A cover letter guaranteed confidentiality of responses and all surveys

were returned directly to the authors. The surveys were distributed in the
restaurants by the researchers and assistants. The survey and subject
selection were reviewed and approved for the testing of human
participants by a university Institutional Review Board. Respondent
participation in the study was strictly voluntary. The usable sample size
was 369 restaurant customers. The sample was large enough to conduct
one-way ANOVA and T-testing, while compensating for the convenience
sampling utilized.

RESULTS

To address the objectives of the study, respondents were asked to

indicate their level of agreement with 20 factors from their most recent
dining experience at a Japanese restaurant, using a 5-point Likert-type
scale (1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree). An example item was,
“The menu was explanatory and easy to understand.” As shown in Table
1, the gender composition of the participants was 181 females (49.3%)
and 186 males (50.7%). The largest represented age group was
respondents who were among the 21-30 year-old age group (42.7%). The
ethnic breakdown of the participants was 214 Caucasian (62.4%), 111
Asian (32.4%), and 18 other (5.2%). The average respondent was male,
21-30 years old, Caucasian, single, and employed. The largest number of
respondents in this study, 21, (62.8%) were unmarried and 244 of the
respondents were employed (66.7%). Many of the respondents held a
bachelor’s degree, 159 (43.3%), while 143 of the respondents (39%) had
graduated from high school.

Table 1. Demographic profile of Japanese restaurant customers

Characteristics Total %
Age
18 - 20 58 16
21 - 30 157 43
31 - 40 63 17
41 - 50 56 15
51 + 34 9
Gender
Female 181 49
Male 186 51
Ethnicity
Caucasian 214 62
Asian 111 32
Other 18 5

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 TOURISMOS: AN INTERNATIONAL MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF TOURISM
Volume 1, Number 2, 2006, pp. 29-43

Table 2 shows the mean scores of the 20 dining experience factors by

age group. The following section details these findings.

Table 2. Analysis of variance of Japanese restaurant dining

experience factors by age

Age
F
FACTOR 18-20 21-30 31-40 41-50 Over
50
Service MEAN
Had neatly groomed, well-trained 4.42 4.40 4.38 4.58 4.50 0.489
employees
Provided prompt and quick service 4.29 4.07 4.13 4.57 4.56 2.982*
Provided information about food 3.93 3.67 3.55 3.91 4.18 1.688
Served food exactly as ordered 4.56 4.33 4.27 4.50 4.61 1.391
Food
Appearance of food was attractive 4.69 4.56 4.37 4.72 4.83 2.311
Taste of food was excellent 4.49 4.40 4.19 4.67 4.71 2.388
Quality of food was consistent each visit 4.42 4.31 4.06 4.46 4.76 2.747*
Quantity of food was sufficient 4.24 4.00 3.90 4.34 4.56 2.500*
Menu
Menu had variety 4.67 4.39 4.23 4.47 4.58 2.109
Menu was explanatory and easy to 4.00 3.92 3.88 4.08 4.00 0.261
understand
Menu had up-dated items 3.98 3.76 3.68 3.97 4.00 1.020
Menu had healthful items 4.39 4.11 3.88 4.20 4.47 2.243
Ambience and Convenience
Easily accessible parking 4.18 4.19 3.98 4.19 4.05 0.559
Comfortable dining room 4.47 4.30 4.02 4.44 4.30 2.057
Clean restaurant and dining room 4.58 4.37 4.21 4.50 4.53 1.424
Nice atmosphere and ambiance 4.60 4.34 4.10 4.40 4.53 2.262
Price and Value
Prices of food were fair 3.76 3.47 3.29 4.03 4.05 3.625*
*
Would recommend restaurant to others 4.44 4.29 3.96 4.60 4.47 3.171*
This is one of my favorite ethnic restaurants 4.19 4.17 3.76 4.32 4.21 1.739
Restaurant made me feel special 3.93 3.74 3.67 3.97 4.39 1.729
Note: F is significant if p < 0.05 (* p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001)

33
 Johnny Sue Reynolds & Jaesun Hwang

Perceptions of service

In this study, respondents between the ages of 31 and 40 tended to

have higher expectations about Japanese restaurants: (1) having neatly
groomed, well-trained employees, (2) providing information about the
food, and (3) serving the food exactly as it was ordered. The low mean
scores, even though not significant, showed that these customers were not
satisfied with these three dining experience factors. These customers
expected employees to be well-groomed and trained. They anticipated
that the servers would be knowledgeable about the menu and able to
answer questions about the ingredients and cooking methods. The
respondents also expected the food to be presented as ordered, without
mistakes. Apparently, these customers were not pleased with the level of
service they had received at Japanese restaurants.
Respondents who were in the 21-30 age range had significantly
(p<0.05) lower mean scores on the dining experience factor of providing
prompt and quick service. And, customers in the 31-40 age range had the
second lowest mean scores among the different age groups and a low
satisfaction level on the factor of providing prompt and quick service. The
respondents in these two age groups expected Japanese restaurants to
consistently provide these dining experience factors and had higher
expectation levels.
In previous times, customers were prepared to substitute less-than-
excellent service and ambiance for the chance to try something new and
exotic (Restaurant USA, August, 24, 2000). That is no longer the case. In
the United States, there are too many restaurants and too many different
types of restaurants available to consumers and they will not patronize a
restaurant with poor service. A customer perceives quality only when the
service exceeds his/her expectations (Soriano, 2002). Customers will try a
restaurant once, evaluate their dining experience, and never return if their
experience was unsatisfactory. Businesses succeed on having return
customers, not simply with customers who only try a restaurant once.
Collie et al., 2000) found that customers’ desire to return to a restaurant
after experiencing poor service is likely to be influenced if they feel they
had been treated fairly in the service-recovery process. Additional
research has also shown that there is a strong positive relationship
between satisfaction with complaint remedies and customer re-patronage
intentions (Conlon & Murray, 1996; Davidow, 2000).
In order to increase levels of service and maintain return customers,
restaurant owners must regularly train, and retrain, their employees to
deliver consistent, excellent service. Employees must also look clean and

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 TOURISMOS: AN INTERNATIONAL MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF TOURISM
Volume 1, Number 2, 2006, pp. 29-43

well groomed at all times. They must thoroughly understand the menu
and know what ingredients are used in each menu item. Training
employees is the responsibility of the owner or manager and it must be an
ongoing process.
The younger generation of customers wants to have quick and
prompt service. They are often in a hurry and are very spontaneous.
Restaurant managers will have to be well organized and service-oriented
to meet the expectations of this particular group of consumers.

Perceptions of food

It appears that respondents in the 31-40 age group tended to have

higher expectations about (1) the appearance of the food, (2) taste of the
food, (3) consistent quality of the food, and (4) the quantity of food based
on their low mean scores. They were dissatisfied with these four dining
experience factors.
The 31-40 year old respondents also had significantly (p<0.05) lower
mean scores on the consistent quality of the food and the quantity of the
food. These Japanese restaurant customers had higher expectations about
the food they were being served and were dissatisfied with both the
quality and quantity of the food they were served. The results of this
study are consistent with the findings of Soriano, who stated that food is
more important in customer satisfaction than any other restaurant attribute
(2002). The respondents in this study expected the food to be attractive in
appearance, with a nice place presentation. They also wanted the food to
be the same every time they frequented the restaurant. These customers
were also disappointed with the quantity of food served to them.
The 21-30 year old respondents also significantly scored these two
factors lower: the consistent quality of the food and the quantity of the
food (p<0.05). This was consistent with Soriano’s finding that food was
more important than any other attribute among this age group (2002).
Brumback (1998) found that customers return to a restaurant because of
the quality of the food and fresh ingredients. Soriano found that the
quality of food was the most important reason for customers to return to a
restaurant (2002). For Japanese restaurateurs to increase their market
share in the United States, they will need to focus on their restaurant’s
food quality and the quantity of food served. The respondents in this
study did not feel that the quality or quantity of food served in Japanese
restaurants met their expectations, especially among the 31-40 year old
customers. In order to maintain this segment of the market, the customer
perceptions of the food will need to be increased.

35
 Johnny Sue Reynolds & Jaesun Hwang

Perceptions of menu

Respondents who were between the ages of 31 and 40 years of age

had higher expectation levels and lower mean scores than other age
groups on the dining experience factors of (1) menu had variety, (2) menu
was explanatory and easy to understand, (3) menu had up-dated menu
items, and (4) menu had healthful menu items. The age group which had
the next lowest mean scores was the respondents who were between 21-
30 years of age. This group was dissatisfied about all four factors related
to the menu. They wanted to have more menu items to choose from and
they were also dissatisfied with the menu itself; they found that the menu
was not easy to understand, nor self-explanatory. Japanese restaurant
managers could engage customers of differing ages to critique their
menus and provide guidance on how their menus could be better designed
and presented. They could also cater to the 31-40 year old customers by
developing more up-dated, trendy menu items. This group of consumers
tends to be more sophisticated and eager to try new things. None of the
mean scores of the dining experience factors which were related to the
perception of the menu were statistically significant among the different
age groups.

Perceptions of ambience/convenience

There was no significance found among the dining experience factors

related to perceptions of ambiance and convenience of Japanese
restaurants. However, the 31-40 year old respondents had lower mean
scores and higher expectation levels about the factors of (1) accessible
parking, (2) a comfortable dining room, (3) a clean restaurant and dining
room, and (4) nice atmosphere and ambiance. This group of customers
may want something more trendy, updated, and exciting. They may
perceive Japanese restaurants to be repetitious and unexciting. Dulen
(1998) reported that in today’s constantly changing marketplace,
restaurant concepts may need to be regularly updated in order to
successfully compete with other restaurants. Customers insist on having a
comfortable atmosphere and the 1998 study by Pillsbury found that the
appearance and taste of foods have been replaced by the dining
environment. Soriano found that the place/ambiance of the restaurant is
just as important as the cost and value of the meal (2002).
This study confirmed that 31-40 year olds want to have a more
comfortable dining room, a clean restaurant, and accessible parking. This

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 TOURISMOS: AN INTERNATIONAL MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF TOURISM
Volume 1, Number 2, 2006, pp. 29-43

is all part of having a nice atmosphere and ambiance, and this group of
consumers will not patronize restaurants that do not satisfy these needs.

Perceptions of price and value

Again, the respondents who were in the 31-40 age group had lower
mean scores and lower satisfaction levels than the other age groups on the
four dining experience factors of (1) prices of food were fair, (2) would
recommend restaurant to others, (3) this is one of my favorite restaurants,
and (4) the restaurant made me feel special. The dining experience factor,
prices of food were fair, was highly significant (p<0.01) among the 31-40
year old respondents. It appears that these respondents had higher
expectation levels and lower satisfaction levels about the prices at
Japanese restaurants. In order to increase customer perceptions of their
dining experience, Japanese restaurateurs may want to develop better cost
control methods which could give them the ability to have competitive
pricing with other Asian restaurants.
The dining experience factor, would recommend this restaurant to
others, was highly significant (p<0.05) among all age groups, with mean
scores ranging from 3.96 to 4.60. This indicated that the participants
would indeed recommend this Japanese restaurant to others. The 31-40
year old respondents scored lowest on this factor (3.96). A customer who
says they would recommend a restaurant to others is most likely to return
to the restaurant themselves (Soriano, 2002), which indicates a high level
of customer satisfaction.
As can be seen in Table 3, which is a summary table of the Japanese
restaurant customer dining experience factors by age, there were
significant differences between the age groups of participants regarding
their dining experience factors of Japanese restaurants. Mean scores of
respondents who fell in the 31-40 age group were significantly lower than
those of all other age groups (p<0.05) in all but one of the dining
experience factors. These respondents were not satisfied with these
factors of their dining experience: consistency of food quality, sufficient
quantity of food, prices of food were fair, and would recommend this
restaurant to others. This same age group scored lowest (3.29) on the
factor, prices of the food was fair (p<0.01). Respondents who were 21-30
years of age scored significantly lower on the dining experience factor of
providing prompt and quick service, meaning that they were also not
satisfied with the level of service at the Japanese restaurants (p<0.05).

37
 Johnny Sue Reynolds & Jaesun Hwang

Table 3. Summary table of Japanese restaurant customer dining

experience factors by age

Age
Dining Experience Factor F
18-20 21-30 31-40 41-50 Over 50
MEAN
Provided prompt and quick 4.29 4.07 4.13 4.57 4.56 2.982*
service
Quality of food was 4.42 4.31 4.06 4.46 4.76 2.747*
consistent each visit
Quantity of food was 4.24 4.00 3.90 4.34 4.56 2.500*
sufficient
Prices of food were fair 3.76 3.47 3.29 4.03 4.05 3.625**
Would recommend this 4.44 4.29 3.96 4.60 4.47 3.171*
restaurant to others
Note: F is significant if p < 0.05 (* p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001)

Results indicated that consumers ages 21-40 had significantly lower

dining experience rates than the older age group (41+). Specifically, the
21-30 age participants tended to have higher expectation levels about the
level of prompt and quick service at Japanese restaurants (p<0.05).
Participants who were ages 31-40 were significantly dissatisfied with the
quality, quantity, price of food, and would not recommend the restaurant
to others (p<0.05).
Conversely, respondents who were 40 and older had highly
significantly dining experience factor rates in these areas: (1) prompt and
quick service, (2) consistent quality of food, (3) quantity of food, (4) fair
food prices, and (5) would recommend the restaurant to others. They were
more satisfied with each of these dining experience factors than the
younger customers (18-40 years).

Rankings of dining experience factors by age

Table 4 depicts how the participants ranked the dining experience

factors by age. As can been seen, the appearance of the food was ranked
number 1 by all age groups except the 31-40 year olds, who ranked this
factor as number 2. Respondents seemed to thoroughly enjoy the
presentation of the food they were served at Japanese restaurants. The
taste of the food was the next highest ranking dining experience factor,
with the 41-50 year old respondents ranking this factor the highest at
number 2. The 21-30 year olds and those over the age of 50 ranked this

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 TOURISMOS: AN INTERNATIONAL MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF TOURISM
Volume 1, Number 2, 2006, pp. 29-43

factor as number 3, while the 18-20 and 31-40 year olds ranked this factor
as number 6.

Table 4. Rankings of dining experience factors by age

Age
18-20 21-30 31-40 41-50 Over 50
1 Appearance Appearance Had neatly Appearance of Appearance of
of food was of food was groomed, food was food was
attractive attractive well-trained attractive attractive
employees
2 Menu had Had neatly Appearance Taste of food Quality of food
variety groomed, of food was was excellent was consistent
well-trained attractive each visit
employees
3 Nice Taste of food Served food Would Taste of food
atmosphere was excellent exactly as recommend was excellent
and ambiance ordered restaurant to
others
4 Clean Menu had Menu had Had neatly Served food
restaurant and variety variety groomed, well- exactly as
dining room trained ordered
employees
5 Served food Clean Clean Provided prompt Menu had
exactly as restaurant and restaurant and and quick variety
ordered dining room dining room service
6 Taste of food Nice Taste of food Clean restaurant Provided prompt
was excellent atmosphere was excellent and dining room and quick
and ambiance service
7 Comfortable Served food Provided Served food Quantity of food
dining room exactly as prompt and exactly as was sufficient
ordered quick service ordered
8 Would Quality of Nice Menu had Clean restaurant
recommend food was atmosphere variety and dining room
restaurant to consistent and ambiance
others each visit
9 Had neatly Comfortable Quality of Quality of food Nice atmosphere
groomed, dining room food was was consistent and ambiance
well-trained consistent each visit
employees each visit
10 Quality of Would Comfortable Comfortable Had neatly
food was recommend dining room dining room groomed, well-
consistent restaurant to trained
each visit others employees
11 Menu had Easily Easily Nice atmosphere Menu had
healthful accessible accessible and ambiance healthful items
items parking parking
12 Provided This is one of Would Quantity of food Would
prompt and my favorite recommend was sufficient recommend
quick service ethnic restaurant to restaurant to
restaurants others others

39
 Johnny Sue Reynolds & Jaesun Hwang

13 Quantity of Menu had Quantity of This is one of Restaurant made

food was healthful food was my favorite me feel special
sufficient items sufficient ethnic
restaurants
14 This is one of Provided Menu was Menu had Comfortable
my favorite prompt and explanatory healthful items dining room
ethnic quick service and easy to
restaurants understand
15 Easily Quantity of Menu had Easily This is one of
accessible food was healthful accessible my favorite
parking sufficient items parking ethnic
restaurants
16 Menu was Menu was This is one of Menu was Provided
explanatory explanatory my favorite explanatory and information
and easy to and easy to ethnic easy to about food
understand understand restaurants understand
17 Menu had up- Menu had up- Menu had up- Prices of food Prices of food
dated items dated items dated items were fair were fair
18 Provided Restaurant Restaurant Restaurant made Easily
information made me feel made me feel me feel special accessible
about food special special parking
19 Restaurant Provided Provided Menu had up- Menu had up-
made me feel information information dated items dated items
special about food about food
20 Prices of food Prices of food Prices of food Provided Menu was
were fair were fair were fair information explanatory and
about food easy to
understand

The lowest overall ranking dining experience factor was, prices of the
food were fair. The participants ages 18-40 ranked this factor as number
20, the lowest possible ranking. The 41+ participants ranked this factor
as number 17. This clearly showed that customers perceive Japanese
restaurants as being over-priced.

CONCLUSION

In this study, the 31-40 year old Japanese restaurant customers were
the most dissatisfied with their dining experiences at Japanese restaurants
and seemed to be unhappy with all aspects of their dining experience.
These respondents felt that the quantity of food was not large enough
based on the price. They also indicated that Japanese food was too
expensive. As a result, they did not perceive that they received value for
their money spent. Japanese restaurateurs should consider monitoring
their menu pricing and determine methods to control costs in order to
reduce menu prices. This particular age group (31-40) eats out often and
many times they take their families. Parents may feel that their children
are not welcomed at Japanese restaurants, as there are often limited menu

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 TOURISMOS: AN INTERNATIONAL MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF TOURISM
Volume 1, Number 2, 2006, pp. 29-43

items for children. These consumers may sense that Japanese restaurants
are more formal and not casual enough for family dining. Increasing
numbers of families have dual incomes and spend more money eating out
than ever before. This sector of the dining population holds an important
strategic position in the future of successful restaurants (Soriano, 2002).
Japanese restaurants must appeal to all generations in order to gain a
larger market share. In the review of the literature, it was found that older
generations of consumers tend to shy away from ethnic restaurants, but in
this study, the older customers seemed to be satisfied with their
experience when they dined at Japanese restaurants. The older
respondents (41-50) in this study seemed to be very satisfied with their
dining experiences at Japanese restaurants; however, they did feel that the
food was too expensive. Japanese restaurateurs should develop and/or
modify their menus and marketing pieces to appeal to a greater number of
older customers who may enjoy eating at these restaurants once they
experience this type of ethnic food.
Lago and Poffley (1993) discussed important methods to
accommodate seniors in their study of the projected wants of this market
segment through 2010:
1. Speed and quality of service will continue to be important features to
these customers.
2. Nutrition and healthy cooking methods will be increasingly important
to older consumers as they give attention to healthy eating habits.
3. Providing nutrition information on the menu will increase brand
loyalty from this age group.
Younger customers believed that service at Japanese restaurants was
too slow. They are used to a fast-paced, quick-service type of atmosphere.
Japanese restaurateurs may want to include some quick menu items to
encourage this group of spontaneous, on-the-run, younger customers.
Because younger customers are Internet-savvy, the manager might
consider creating a Web site where the restaurant and its products can be
featured.
Repeat customers are the key to successful restaurants. It is not
guaranteed that a satisfied customer will return to a restaurant, but it is
almost certain that an unhappy customer will not return (Soriano, 2002).
Since resources are usually limited, restaurateurs must determine which
improvements among the 20 dining experience factors are most likely to
encourage a customer’s repeat purchase. They must also determine
whether the time, financial investment, and effort needed to improve these
factors will be worthwhile to increase repeat patronage.

41
 Johnny Sue Reynolds & Jaesun Hwang

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of age on

customer dining experiences at Japanese restaurants in the United States
and to determine if there were differences in influential factors between
customers of different ages when they eat at Japanese restaurants. The
study illustrated that there were, indeed, significant differences between
dining experience levels of customers of different ages. Restaurant
managers should ascertain which dining experience factors are most
responsible for creating return business and seek ways for improvements.

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SUBMITTED: JULY 2005

REVISION SUBMITTED: NOVEMBER 2005
ACCEPTED: JANUARY 2006
REFEREED ANONYMOUSLY

Johnny Sue Reynolds ([email protected]) is Professor and Associate

Dean at University of North Texas, School of Merchandising &
Hospitality Management, PO Box 311100, Denton, TX 76203-1100 USA.
Jaesun Hwang is a Visiting Research Scholar at University of North
Texas, School of Merchandising & Hospitality Management, PO Box
311100, Denton, TX 76203-1100 USA.

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 Johnny Sue Reynolds & Jaesun Hwang

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