Sign of the times: Testing consumer response to local food signage within a casual dining restaurant

•Effects of locally produced food signage were tested in a buffet-style restaurant.•Largest effects occurred with local identification, farm name, and pictures of farm.•Product involvement had no significant effect on proposed construct relationships.

The study examines the impact of variations in locally produced food signage on consumer attributes within a casual buffet-style restaurant. A baseline period followed by three treatments were conducted to test signage effects on the constructs of product involvement, servicescape perception, pleasure, perceived product quality and revisit intention. Moderation effects from product involvement were also investigated on the proposed structural paths. Results suggested that the largest effects occurred on the constructs when local identification, farm name, and pictures of the farm were included. Product involvement showed no moderation effects on the proposed relationships. Implications for academics and practitioners were provided as were future research directions.