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Food Delivery Services and Korean Food Basics

BoldMaple479ยทUpdated Feb 24, 2026ยท2 reads

Food Delivery Culture

Korea has one of the most advanced food delivery systems in the world. Almost any restaurant delivers, and delivery is often free or very cheap.

Delivery Apps

  1. Baedal Minjok (๋ฐฐ๋ฏผ) โ€” Largest selection. Korean only but easy to navigate with Papago.
  2. Coupang Eats โ€” English interface available. Fast delivery.
  3. Yogiyo (์š”๊ธฐ์š”) โ€” Similar to Baedal Minjok. Korean only.
Most delivery apps accept credit card or mobile payment. Minimum order amounts (๋ฐฐ๋‹ฌ ์ตœ์†Œ ์ฃผ๋ฌธ) usually apply, typically 10,000โ€“15,000 KRW.

Korean Dishes to Know

Rice Dishes

  1. Bibimbap (๋น„๋น”๋ฐฅ) โ€” Mixed rice with vegetables, meat, and chili paste
  2. Gimbap (๊น€๋ฐฅ) โ€” Rice rolls wrapped in seaweed
  3. Bokkeumbap (๋ณถ์Œ๋ฐฅ) โ€” Fried rice

Soups and Stews

  1. Kimchi-jjigae (๊น€์น˜์ฐŒ๊ฐœ) โ€” Kimchi stew. Korea's most common home meal.
  2. Doenjang-jjigae (๋œ์žฅ์ฐŒ๊ฐœ) โ€” Soybean paste stew
  3. Sundubu-jjigae (์ˆœ๋‘๋ถ€์ฐŒ๊ฐœ) โ€” Soft tofu stew
  4. Samgyetang (์‚ผ๊ณ„ํƒ•) โ€” Ginseng chicken soup

Meat

  1. Samgyeopsal (์‚ผ๊ฒน์‚ด) โ€” Grilled pork belly
  2. Bulgogi (๋ถˆ๊ณ ๊ธฐ) โ€” Marinated grilled beef
  3. Dakgalbi (๋‹ญ๊ฐˆ๋น„) โ€” Spicy stir-fried chicken

Noodles

  1. Jajangmyeon (์ž์žฅ๋ฉด) โ€” Black bean noodles
  2. Naengmyeon (๋ƒ‰๋ฉด) โ€” Cold buckwheat noodles
  3. Ramyeon (๋ผ๋ฉด) โ€” Korean instant noodles, a staple

Dining Etiquette

  1. Side dishes (๋ฐ˜์ฐฌ) are free and refillable โ€” just ask
  2. Elders eat first at group meals
  3. Do not pour your own drink in a group setting โ€” others pour for you
  4. Tipping is not practiced or expected in Korea
  5. Water and banchan are self-serve at most casual restaurants

For Dietary Restrictions

  1. Halal โ€” Limited options. Itaewon has the most halal restaurants. Check the Korea Muslim Food directory at koreahalal.org.
  2. Vegetarian/Vegan โ€” Challenging as many Korean dishes contain meat stock or fish sauce. Temple food restaurants (์‚ฌ์ฐฐ์Œ์‹) are fully vegan. The app HappyCow lists vegetarian restaurants.
  3. Allergies โ€” Allergen labeling is required on packaged food but not always at restaurants. Learn the Korean words for your allergens.

Restaurant info and app features change frequently. Check current reviews before visiting.

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