Fair Food Prices

Food culture

In Seoul, lunch tends to matter more than breakfast — many people skip breakfast or grab coffee and a pastry, then eat a proper meal at a gukbap counter or with coworkers as part of a group meal (hoesik). Almost every sit-down meal comes with a spread of free banchan that gets refilled on request, so the plate in front of you is never really just what's on the menu. The tier gap widens most around grilled beef, where the same cut can cost several times more once it's graded hanwoo (Korean beef) instead of imported, and old-school markets like Gwangjang still do brisk business selling banchan and street food by the container rather than the plate.