PERCEIVED VALUE, CUSTOMERS’ SATISFACTION, AND CUSTOMERS’ BEHAVIORAL INTENTION TOWARDS MALAYSIAN HERITAGE FOOD SERVED BY HOTELS AROUND KLANG VALLEY

Abstract

Malaysian heritage food has become the most noticeable sign of the intermingling culture of ’Malaysia’s multiracial population. Heritage food can provide an intuitive sense of unity and a better understanding of the history of multiracial cultures. While their heritage foods are served in various establishments, hotel dining restaurants have become one of the most essential platforms that serve the highest quality Malaysian heritage food. The general objective of this research is to determine the perceived value, customer satisfaction, and behavioural intention towards Malaysian heritage food served by hotels around Klang Valley. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to select 200 respondents among customers who dined in the chosen hotel restaurants around Klang Valley. Findings are shown in terms of the perceived value of overall atmospheric (3.88 ± 0.51) followed by the overall service quality (3.78 ± 0.52) and the overall food quality (3.77 ± 0.65). Respondents were most satisfied with the “Interior dining environment” (3.85 ± 0.62), and “Professionalism and courtesy of the employees” (3.80 ± 0.65); however, they appeared less enthusiastic about the “Taste and authenticity of the heritage foods” (3.64 ± 0.63) and the “Price of the food” (3.55 ± 0.68). The impact of customer behavioural intention was also further discussed. Finally, the study indicated that there is a significant difference in the perceived value (p=0.007) and customer satisfaction (p=0.035) among varying demographic characteristics (race). However, no significant differences among demographics toward the dependent variable of customer satisfaction were found. Only race is significantly related to perceived value and customer satisfaction.