The power of gastronomic cultural capital: How local food culture shapes residents' recommendation intention

While destinations increasingly leverage cultural capital for competitiveness, research predominantly focuses on top-down promotions of monument-centered heritage, neglecting the distinct social logic of gastronomic culture. Grounded in cultural capital theory, this study aims to examine how Hong Kong's tea restaurants food culture translates into residents' recommendation intentions toward culturally diverse individuals. It untangles the core inquiries: how everyday food culture fosters attachment; how this attachment subsequently shapes cultural identity and confidence; and how nostalgia and knowledge moderate these psychological pathways. Additionally, it identifies which specific tea restaurant's food culture dimensions serve as the primary drivers. Utilizing an empirical sample of 615 Hong Kong residents, this research adopts a PLS–SEM–ANN approach. The PLS–SEM analysis confirms that cultural identity and confidence act as pivotal mediators, while the complementary ANN analysis reveals that gastronomic identity, exceeding mere sensory flavour, is the predominant driving dimension. Empirically, nostalgia amplifies the culture–attachment link, and knowledge strengthens the attachment–confidence relationship. These findings advocate for a paradigm shift in destination marketing: beyond institutional campaigns, mobilizing residents as active cultural transmitters is crucial for gastronomic tourism, establishing a scalable mechanism for everyday cultural capital transmission.