“I became a child again!” How to stage engaging restaurant experiences modeling the service management process

There is a lack of comprehensive guidance in service marketing literature on how restaurant managers can effectively design structures, allocate resources, and facilitate interactions to co-create value and foster engaging dining experiences. Through our theory-building research, we address this gap in the hospitality service marketing literature by introducing a new restaurant experience staging management model. This model not only identifies critical elements for cultivating engaging dining experiences but also outlines the executive processes involved in achieving this. Our approach integrates existing theoretical frameworks with practical insights gained from an action research methodology applied to three distinct case studies. We delineate three core staging management functions essential for the effective orchestration of restaurant experiences: leadership, artistic performance delivery and insight creation. We also introduce three organizational support practices that are needed for the maximally effective management of staging engaging restaurant experiences.