Gastronomy behaviors of potential and effective visitors: a case study of cuisine culture in the province of Aydın

The statement of problem in this study, which aims at specifying the gastronomic features in the province of Aydin and evaluating the extent to which the city can meet the expectations ofinternational gastronomy participants, can be summarized as follows: "What is the extent to which Aydin meets the expectations of gastronomy participants on the basis of its gastronomic features?" The sub-problems of the study are listed below: 1. Do gastronomy behaviors of international visitors in Aydin contribute to the qualification of the region as a gastronomy destination? 2. What are the views of the stakeholders in the tourism industry in Aydin about the gastronomy features of the city? 3. Can the gastronomy features of Aydinappeal to international visitors? The study employs mixed method because this method can both intensify and enhance the research (İslamoğluveAlnıaçık, 2014). In order to develop a comprehensive approach towards the research problem, the study is designed in mixed method rather than a single research method. The first part of the research consists of a questionnaire which has been given, with the permission of the general management,to the tourists staying in KuşadasıLabranda Ephesus Princess Hotel on 15th Feb 2016. The questionnaire is based on HasanAslan's master's thesis "The Place and Importance of Gastronomy Tourism in the Tourism Education Programs - An Application", which was prepared and applied in the province of Konya in 2010. It is stated in Aslan's study that the questions are based on the studies by Hall and Mitchell (2005), Şanlıer (2005), Akman (1998), Shenoy (2005) and the literature on this subject. The section "D. Questions for Evaluating Gastronomy Behaviours" in Aslan's study has been adapted into demographic travelling features. A five-level Likert scale (1: Strongly Disagree, 2: Disagree, 3: Neutral, 4: Agree, 5: Strongly Agree) was used to measure the level of agreement with the items in the questionnaire. The second part of the research employs qualitative research techniques and semi-structured questions to specify the gastronomic features in the province of Aydin.Thirty-five participants were interviewed with semi-structured questions in their own office for about 20 or 30 minutes in order to specify the gastronomic features of the province of Aydin. In this stage of the research 89 recipes were listed by means of content analysis technique. Out of 89 recipes, 35 were vegetable dishes, 16 were meat dishes, 17 were soups, salads, and appetizers, 15 were pastry dishes, and 6 were desserts. Although the recipes were accompanied by particular stories, they were not included in the study as the participants could not remember them clearly. During the third part, the participants in the international culinary festivals in March and Aprilwere given aWACS (World Association of Chefs Societies) evaluation form on the scale of 100 points. The participants were asked to evaluate the gastronomic features of Aydın according to a sample menu. The menu was approved by the participants in both festivals. The score is 85.6 in Croatia and 91.3in Vietnam. The most critical question in this study, that is "Would you prefer the region of Aydin as a gastronomy destination?" received the answer "Yes" by 92.2% in Croatia and 91.3% in Vietnam. This result provesthat the gastronomy potential in Aydinis a significant reason for preference on the part of international visitors. KEY WORDS: gastronomy, gastronomy behavior, gastronomy tourism, Aydin, culture, cuisine