Evaluation of students’ satisfaction with three all-you-can-eat university dining facilities

Abstract

With the growing number of dining options, both on and off campus, university dining facilities need to assess their ability to meet the needs of the student population, considering the competitive alternate dining options. The purposes of this study were to (1) measure university students’ satisfaction with, and importance of, nine key attributes of three unique, all-you-can-eat, university dining facilities and (2) compare and contrast students’ ratings of attributes among the three dining facilities. A one-way ANOVA determined that participants at Dinning Facility 1 rated 8 of 9 attributes significantly higher on satisfaction compared to Dining Facilities 2 and 3. Attributes with highest satisfaction were cleanliness, atmosphere/environment, and image/reputation. Attributes with lowest satisfaction were menu variety, food quality, and healthy options. These results can guide dining facilities in efforts to improve customer satisfaction.