The two purposes of this study were to understand service encounters in Korean restaurants by foreigners living in Korea and to examine the effect of service encounters on the customer's emotion feelings, customer satisfaction, and behavioral intention. Based on the reactions of a total of 614 foreigners obtained by empirical research, this study reviews the reliability and fitness of the research model, and verifies a total of 4 hypotheses using the Amos program. The hypothesized relationships in the model were tested simultaneously using a structural equation model (SEM). The proposed model provided an adequate fit to the data: χ2 683.466 (df=216), CMIN/df 3.164, RMR 0.095, GFI 0.911, AGFI 0.886, NFI 0.933, CFI 0.953, and RMSEA 0.059. As a result of empirical analysis, the physical environment, interactions with employees, and interactions with other customers were quantified as service encounter factors in Korean restaurants. These factors were indicated to have an influence on customer's emotion feelings. Also, customer's emotion feelings had a positive influence on customer satisfaction and behavioral intent. Limitations and future research are also discussed.

This study investigated the perception, evaluation, and the possibility for globalizing Korean foods and Yak-sun among different nationalities of foreigners living in Korea. A survey was conducted with 171 foreigners (eastern Asian, southeastern and central Asian, European, and American). The questionnaire was composed of three parts, including perception, evaluation, and the possibility for globalizing Korean foods and Yak-sun. The reason for choosing Korean foods cited by southeastern and central Asians and Americans was "taste", whereas eastern Asians and Europeans chose "culture" and "curiosity", respectively. Americans and Europeans considered "spiciness" as a reason not to choose Korean foods (P<0.001). Regarding the possibility of globalizing Korean foods, eastern Asians and Americans/Europeans/southeast Asians and central Asians responded "Korean dining culture" and "incomprehensive menus", respectively (P<0.05). An "explanation of the menu to foreigners" was regarded as the main suggestion for globalizing Korean food. Most of the respondents understood that Yak-sun is an oriental medicinal food that provides improved health and disease prevention. A number of Europeans and Americans expressed high interest in the conceptualization of Yak-sun (P<0.001). With regard to the priority for developing Yak-sun, eastern Asians, southeastern and central Asians, and Europeans picked out "health status improvement", whereas "improved nutritional status" was manifested in the majority of the American's responses (P<0.001). Therefore, it is crucial that "localization" be applied to Korean foods and Yak-sun to meet the international standard. Furthermore, it is necessary to provide simplified and correct Korean food content information to foreigners.

A number of factors are thought to influence people’s food choices, and there has recently been an increasing emphasis on understanding the consumer’s motives behind choice of food types. For one thing, an individual’s personal food-related tastes are thought to certainly influence personal food choice. This study aimed to discover the new motives for food, and what motives determine the food choice of foreigners living in Korea. Subjects (N=210) completed a Food Choice Questionnaire (65 questions) measuring specific motives and sociodemographic conditions (9 questions). Factor analysis and ANOVA were used to ascertain the food choice motives. Fourteen factors emerged, which were labeled health, mood, convenience, sensory appeal, natural content, price, weight control, familarity, political value, ecological protection. and religion. We also found that motives for new food choices include national image and information, ethnic food, and sanitation. Items were analysed to determine differences according to nationality, religion, occupation, and length of residence in Korea. All subjects thought sanitation is the most important motive in choice of food, and health, natural content, and ethnic food were also important.