“Is this restaurant halal?” Surrogate indicators and Muslim behaviour

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate what cues or surrogate indicators Muslims use to determine whether restaurants are suitable for dining purposes in the absence of the halal logo and to examine if the cues used are different among Muslims from non-Muslim countries as opposed to Muslims from Muslim countries. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected via semi-structured interviews in one Muslim majority (Malaysia) and one non-Muslim country (the UK). A total of 16 adults participated in the study with an equal representation from both countries. Findings In the absence of the halal logo, participants relied on extrinsic cues such as the presence of other Muslim-looking customers and service personnel to determine whether a restaurant was deemed safe for dining in. The location of a restaurant was a strong indicator for Muslims in both Muslim and non-Muslim countries. In the absence of the halal logo, participants read the menus carefully, queried the service personnel for additional information and selected safer options, such as vegetarian and seafood. Research limitations/implications The study used a small sample, and therefore, the findings are tentative. Practical implications Given the growth of Muslim population in many non-Muslim countries, it is important for restaurants in non-Muslim countries not to marginalize this customer base. Trust is a key issue and service providers without the halal logo should gain the trust of Muslim customers by training service personnel and equipping them with knowledge of what halal means, developing menus with vegetarian and seafood options, providing detailed information on ingredients and communicating this on their websites and social media sites. They could also consider working with Muslim food and travel bloggers to promote themselves to a Muslim audience. They can develop a more Muslim sympathetic marketing approach and consider using separate cooking and serving utensils to gain trust and patronage of Muslim customers as well as to appeal to a larger market (vegans/vegetarians). Originality/value The present study is one of the first studies that concentrates on gaining an insight into how Muslims make decision pertaining to the selection and dining at a restaurant in the absence of the halal logo. A major contribution of the study is the identification of cues that assist Muslims when evaluating and selecting alternative food options in the absence of a halal logo.

Modelling Muslims’ revisit intention of non-halal certified restaurants in Malaysia

“…Recent developments show that Muslim customers tend to patronize non-halal certified food premises. Khan and Khan (2019a, 2019b) stated that non-halal certified restaurants serving international cuisine attracted many Muslim customers due to the growing popularity of international cuisine. A non-halal certified restaurant manager revealed that using Muslim staff positively influenced the restaurant’s perceived image among Muslims, thus increasing the restaurant’s attractiveness to Muslim customers (Rosnan et al , 2015) which may affect the customers’ intention to return (Mohd Yusof et al , 2020).…”

“…However, in the same field of study, hardly any publication explains Muslim customers’ retention behaviour in non-halal certified restaurants. For Muslims, it is an obligation to consume halal products; however, non-halal-certified restaurants are still popular with Muslim consumers (Khan and Khan, 2019a, 2019b). For these reasons, the authors of the current study intended to fill this gap by revealing factors influencing Muslim retention towards non-halal certified restaurants.…”

Intentions’ Determinants of Malaysian Muslim Travellers to Patronize Restaurants in South Korea

“…The existence of Muslim customers is selected to be another attribute of this study. The results of a previous study show that restaurant attributes become a reliable indicator for Muslims to dine in restaurants without the Halal logo (Khan & Khan, 2019a). Hence, the hypothesis is:H5a: Restaurant attributes as a moderator will strengthen the factors (attitude, subjective norm, PBC, and religiosity) towards the intention of Muslim travellers to patronise the Halal Certified Restaurant H5b: Restaurant attributes as a moderator will strengthen the factors (attitude, subjective norm, PBC, and religiosity) towards the intention of Muslim travellers to patronise the Muslim Friendly Restaurant…”

“…Due to the lack of Halal food, they tend to be more adaptable to the current conditions at the destinations. They do not mind eating at MFR, primarily vegetarian and seafood restaurants (Khan & Khan, 2019a). On the other hand, another group of travellers will only patronise restaurants with Halal certification.…”

Religion and Psychological Values in Culinary Tradition Within Local Communities of West Kalimantan

“…Only 4.3 percent of Thailand's 69 million people are Muslim. This shows that Thailand's strong position in the global halal industry is due to the tourism industry, which helps to improve halal branding, uniformity of halal definitions and standards, as well as effective support for local Small and Medium Enterprises (Khan, 2019).…”