A Study on Recognition and Preference of Korean Foods for Foreigners in Different Nationality
The study investigated the recognition and preference of foreigner to Korean foods in different nationality. Questionnaires consisted of two languages- Chinese and English were given to 180 residing foreigners in Insa-dong and COEX mall areas and interview methods were used. A total of 157 questionnaires were analyzed for statistical analysis. The statistical analysis was completed using SPSS Win(ver 11.0) for descriptive analysis, χ2-test, ANOVA and Tukey's test. Main results of this study were as follows: First, the factors foreigners considered when they chose food of other countries were; 1.new taste, 2.curiosity, 3.foreign culture, 4.foreign tradition. People from European and Asian countries were inclined to 'New taste' first, while people from American and Oceanian countries were inclined to "curiosity". Second, most of respondents have tried Bulgogi and Galbi before and many of them also have tried Kimchi, Kimbop, and Bibimbop as common Korean foods. Third, the preference was different according to their origins. Asian people liked diverse cuisines including Bulgogi, Galbi, Kimchi, Dubu Doenjan chige, and Samgaetang, while European and Oceanian people liked Bulgogi, Galbi, and Bibimbop. The preference for Kimchi was considerably high among Asian people, however, low among American and Oceanian people(p〈0.05). Fourth, Deviation was little on the taste, color, and table settings of Korean foods; most of the respondents was satisfied on those factors. European and Oceanian people who were familiar with table setting according to time were satisfied at table setting of Korean foods, which focused on space, rather than time. Fifth, most of the respondents, especially Asian people, remarked that Korean foods were spicy. The opinion on the taste of Korean foods was variable according to their nations. Currently many of culinary companies from Korea were leading their active business in foreign countries such as China and United States. Their domain was not limited to traditional Korean foods, but expanding to various fields such as fast foods, bakery goods, and fusion snacks.