ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The purposes of this study were to investigate food consumption practices and analyze factors that influence customer satisfaction of an HACCP applied restaurant in a highway service area. METHODS: A total of 207 customer responses were used for data analysis. Statistical analyses were conducted using the SPSS program (ver. 22.0) for χ²-test, Pearson correlation analysis, and multiple regression analysis. RESULTS: Reasons for visiting the highway area were using the restroom (86.0%), purchasing of meals or snacks (70.1%), taking a rest (58.5%), and shopping (3.4%) and selection attributes of food sold in the highway service area were food taste (48.8%), food safety (33.3%), and waiting time for meal (10.7%). According to the results of the survey, udon (66.2%) was the most preferred meal, followed by instant noodles (56.0%), kimbap (50.7%), pork cutlet (38.2%), and bibimbap (29.0%). In addition, coffee (73.4%) was the most preferred among snacks and beverages, followed by beverages (58.9%), walnut cake (53.1%), mineral water (52.2%), and hotbar (52.2%). Satisfaction evaluation scores of foods sold in the highway service area were highest for appropriate portion size, followed by food safety, menu variety, food taste, and reasonable price. Overall customer satisfaction scores regarding the restaurant in the highway service area was 3.24 out of 5 points on average. According to the results of the multiple regressing analysis, food taste (p < 0.001) and reasonable price (p < 0.01) had significant positive effects on overall customer satisfaction. CONCLUSION: To enhance customer satisfaction, restaurant managers in the highway service area should implement HACCP, improve food taste, and set up a proper price for food sold at the restaurant in the highway service area.