The effect of gastronomic image perception of visitors on street foods: The Antalya example

Street foods, which are the tangible and accessible elements of local flavors, are important factors that show societies consume what, with whom, when and how. In this study, gastronomic image in consumers' minds and attitudes towards the street foods presented in Antalya where Turkey's tourism capital, were investigated. For this purpose, in the year of 2019 between the months of April and July, data obtained from 465 tourist consumers were statistically analyzed and created hypotheses were tested. The findings showed that 76.1 % of the participants were male, 23.9 % were female, 32.3 % were between the age of 34-41, 40 % were married and have children, and 30.5 % were consuming street foods once in a week. It was determined that street foods are the most preferred by the participants when they are with their friends or when they are alone. Besides, the properties of street foods which are prepared in short time and easy to consume at any time of the day and anywhere, were affected the participants' choices. Thanks to the hypotheses, it has been revealed that the attitude towards street foods, the perception of gastronomic image and the intention to purchase differ in terms of various demographic variables. In line with these findings, suggestions were presented to local administrations, tourism marketers and future street foods researchers. Keywords: Street foods, Gastronomic image, Purchase intention, Antalya