From cooking to connection: Key ingredients of memorable tourist food experiences in Vietnamese culinary classes

ANH HONG NGUYEN; FILIPA PERDIGÃO RIBEIRO; NÉLSON MATOS

doi:10.34624/1nq8dp07

Authors

ANH HONG NGUYEN School of Management, Hospitality and Tourism, University of the Algarve, Portugal
FILIPA PERDIGÃO RIBEIRO University of Algarve, Portugal & CITUR Algarve
NÉLSON MATOS University of Algarve, Portugal & CITUR Algarve

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.34624/1nq8dp07

Keywords:

memorable experience, memorable food experience, food tourism, gastronomy tourism, Vietnam

Abstract

In recent years, scholars have studied Memorable Food Experiences (MFEs). However, this type of experience has not received much attention in the context of cooking class activities. Considering this gap in the literature and tackling this research problem, this study attempts to tease out and understand the main elements of the MFEs within the context of cooking classes, focusing on Vietnam as a tourism location. A qualitative method was applied to User-Generated Content (UGC) data retrieved from 754 customer reviews on TripAdvisor posted between April 2022 and March 2024. The data analysis process was carried out iteratively using NVivo, a qualitative data analysis software.

The results highlight customer reviews focused on eight main themes, which were ranked according to number of occurrences per theme: (1) authenticity, (2) food dimensions, (3) guide/chef contribution, (4) hospitality, (5) knowledge dimensions, (6) space and settings, (7) sense of community and, subsequently, (8) future behaviour. In addition, this research offers several managerial guidelines for businesses and organisations to conduct well-coordinated cooking classes, particularly in Vietnam. Finally, the study also makes a significant theoretical contribution to the tourism experience literature by underscoring the guides/chefs' contribution and their critical role in enhancing the sense of community and visitors’ MFEs during cooking classes.