Examining tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the existing vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Romania

With the growth of vegetarianism and veganism worldwide, the restaurant industry in Romania ought to adapt and react proactively to the needs of this evolving market segment. However, a gap has been identified in the literature regarding the understanding of their needs and wants. Academic research...

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Main Author: Elekes, Andra-Henrietta
Format: Dissertation (University of Nottingham only)
Language:English
Published: 2020
Subjects:
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/62628/
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author Elekes, Andra-Henrietta
author_facet Elekes, Andra-Henrietta
author_sort Elekes, Andra-Henrietta
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description With the growth of vegetarianism and veganism worldwide, the restaurant industry in Romania ought to adapt and react proactively to the needs of this evolving market segment. However, a gap has been identified in the literature regarding the understanding of their needs and wants. Academic research failed to inquire into the complex subject of what do vegetarians of vegans expect to find in a restaurant setting. Therefore, this dissertation examined the satisfaction and dissatisfaction motives of vegetarians and vegans regarding the quality of vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Romania. The aim and objectives of this research were met through a qualitative approach, using semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis of interview transcripts to determine the aspects driving tourists’ satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the current offerings. The research produced a number of key findings, showing that aspects driving dissatisfaction prevail, especially the lack of menu variety; the lack of diversity of the types of vegetarian or vegan restaurants; the inaccessible prices and opening hours, as well as the poor marketing strategies of these restaurants and the presence of non-vegan staff. The main conclusion drawn from the findings is that the restaurant industry in Romania is yet unprepared to cater for the needs of a growing vegetarian or vegan tourist mass, as it is still far from reaching the superior standards of vegetarian or vegan restaurants abroad. This research argues that restaurant managers should acknowledge that the needs of vegetarian or vegan customers may differ from those of meat-eaters, should enhance their offering in order to provide a total customer experience and stop assuming that these clients will be satisfied merely with plant-based food options in the menu.
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spelling nottingham-626282023-04-14T12:08:09Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/62628/ Examining tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the existing vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Romania Elekes, Andra-Henrietta With the growth of vegetarianism and veganism worldwide, the restaurant industry in Romania ought to adapt and react proactively to the needs of this evolving market segment. However, a gap has been identified in the literature regarding the understanding of their needs and wants. Academic research failed to inquire into the complex subject of what do vegetarians of vegans expect to find in a restaurant setting. Therefore, this dissertation examined the satisfaction and dissatisfaction motives of vegetarians and vegans regarding the quality of vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Romania. The aim and objectives of this research were met through a qualitative approach, using semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis of interview transcripts to determine the aspects driving tourists’ satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the current offerings. The research produced a number of key findings, showing that aspects driving dissatisfaction prevail, especially the lack of menu variety; the lack of diversity of the types of vegetarian or vegan restaurants; the inaccessible prices and opening hours, as well as the poor marketing strategies of these restaurants and the presence of non-vegan staff. The main conclusion drawn from the findings is that the restaurant industry in Romania is yet unprepared to cater for the needs of a growing vegetarian or vegan tourist mass, as it is still far from reaching the superior standards of vegetarian or vegan restaurants abroad. This research argues that restaurant managers should acknowledge that the needs of vegetarian or vegan customers may differ from those of meat-eaters, should enhance their offering in order to provide a total customer experience and stop assuming that these clients will be satisfied merely with plant-based food options in the menu. 2020-09-10 Dissertation (University of Nottingham only) NonPeerReviewed application/pdf en https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/62628/1/20209290_Dissertation_ExaminingtouristsatisfactionofvegetarianandveganrestaurantsinRomania.pdf Elekes, Andra-Henrietta (2020) Examining tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the existing vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Romania. [Dissertation (University of Nottingham only)] tourism tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction restaurant quality vegetarianism veganism restaurant industry
spellingShingle tourism tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction restaurant quality vegetarianism veganism restaurant industry
Elekes, Andra-Henrietta
Examining tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the existing vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Romania
title Examining tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the existing vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Romania
title_full Examining tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the existing vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Romania
title_fullStr Examining tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the existing vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Romania
title_full_unstemmed Examining tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the existing vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Romania
title_short Examining tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the existing vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Romania
title_sort examining tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the existing vegetarian and vegan restaurants in romania
topic tourism tourist satisfaction and dissatisfaction restaurant quality vegetarianism veganism restaurant industry
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/62628/