Culture and Theory: Considerations for the Ethnic Restaurant and Food Safety Culture

This study examined the culture associated with the ethnic restaurant and the challenges the small, independent ethnic operator faces with regard to food safety. It is well documented that ethnic restaurants have significantly high number of critical violations compared to non-ethnic restaurants in the United States. While this information is public and appears in academic research as a growing issue, researchers have yet to identify why this occurs and what the needs of the ethnic operator might have in comparison to the non-ethnic operator. Authentic ethnic restaurants are predominantly non-chains, individually-operated, staffed with family members or others of their ethnic group, and are culturally authentic. According to Jang et al. (2011), the ethnic food market was predicted to grow 50 percent higher from the reported $75 billion in sales in 2005 to a total of $112.5 billion in 2015. The ethnic restaurant is considered part of the American dining experience and therefore, it is pertinent to investigate the unique needs of this restaurant segment.