Indulge! Presentation of Dining and Drinking Experiences in Contemporary Travel Writing

This study investigated dining and drinking experiences presented in popular media travel articles from three publications. Content analysis was used to investigate which experiences were mentioned, how restaurants and bars were presented, what cuisines were featured, and differences among cities. In total, 107 experiences were analyzed from eleven articles covering four cities. Results indicated a variety of experiences (both local and cosmopolitan) for each city, but also an emphasis on overconsumption. Overall, the articles presented a dual role of presenting each city as possessing a unique dining culture, while also presenting it the same as (or similar to) other cities. Marketing implications for cities and restaurants are also discussed