Korean Job Discussion Forums

crabstix · Joined: 14 Apr 2008

With public schools is lunch free for teachers?

If not, how much should I expect to pay for a meal.

Are there usually rules stating that you have to eat in the school?

schwa · Joined: 18 Jan 2003 Location: Yap

My school charges 2000 won a lunch, deposit upfront for the month. I think 3 or 4000 is more common. Some generous school might treat you. If you opt out, no one should care.

ajgeddes · Joined: 28 Apr 2004 Location: Yongsan

At my school, they were about 1,300 won a meal.

Xuanzang · Joined: 10 Apr 2007 Location: Sadang

Around 30,000 a month for me. Cheap but I`m starting to get fed up of the silver trays and same old slop.

cruisemonkey · Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2008 4:43 am Post subject:

I used to pay W40,000 per month, but now it's 0 because I don't eat that crap.

nobbyken · Joined: 07 Jun 2006 Location: Yongin ^^

Our school charges per day at about 2,300.
You can go for dinner at 6pm, in addition to lunch, should you find yourself a the school at that time.
I must say, not snacking through the day gives me a real appetite for it and it is pretty decent most days.
Elementary school dinners were lukewarm and I hated cold food in winter.

Jammer113 · Joined: 13 Oct 2008

bogey666 · Joined: 17 Mar 2008 Location: Korea, the ass free zone

lunch at my school is 2500 won per meal. You check a box each time you partake.

eating is a complicated issue and one that has been discussed many times here.

I admit to being a picky eater.. when watching my food, etc (and I'm trying to do this lifestyle wise now) even pickier..

when I first came here, I ate EVERYTHING with my fellow teachers in the cafeteria for the first month, probably two.

Then, I decided.. ok .. I am no longer a 'guest', who accepts hospitality with a gracious smile no matter what.. now I live here, I have to eat every day and I have a right to eat or not what I WANT.

Since then I have become increasingly assertive about what I will and wil not eat.. and now if I don't like what I see, I just won't eat it.

I have no idea how my fellow teachers feel about this... but I know I was given some benefit because of my try/eat everything at the beginning stage. I have also taken great pains to explain that I judge each cuisine not as a whole but by a particular dish... there are SOME Korean dishes/meals that I DO like (admittedly not many) but I also skip and reject about 90% of the crap food Americans call "food" as well.
some food from my ethnic background makes me want to vomit.

Koreans have a hard time grasping this concept... to them if it's "Korean" it MUST be good and must be judged as a whole.. but I've tried explaining myself anyways.

fidel · Joined: 07 Feb 2003 Location: North Shore NZ

I had the good fortune to work at one of Korea's most well known high schools in Kangnam and I can tell you the food was absolutely fantastic and cost nada. The teachers had a seperate dining room than the students and were fed a completely different meal to them. It was buffet style so you could pick and choose what you wanted. It's been several years since I returned home but I still remmber it fondly. Especially since I'm now work at a large food manufacturer and their inhouse cafeteria is consists of junk food, stale sandwiches and other tastless crap.

pest2 · Joined: 01 Jun 2005 Location: Vancouver, Canada

yingwenlaoshi · Joined: 12 Feb 2007 Location: ... location, location!

That whole rice deal just goes overboard.

BS.Dos. · Joined: 29 Mar 2007

I think mine costs about 1500 per day, which I imagine, is probably comparable to the slop they dish up in Korean prisons.

cruisemonkey · Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2008 3:35 pm Post subject:

I don't know about Korean prisons, but I can say K-ospital food is even worse than K-school cafeteria food.

Easter Clark · Joined: 18 Nov 2007 Location: Hiding from Yie Eun-woong

The meals here went up to 2,750 won each. I stopped eating in the cafeteria a long time ago. I always felt sluggish and just generally *bad* after eating the "food" from the cafeteria. Good thing my apartment is within walking distance from the school. The past few weeks (since finally getting my LOR from the principal) my lunch breaks have gotten progressively longer.

nomad-ish · Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2008 3:44 pm Post subject:

my school lunch costs about 54,000 won a month. it's actually pretty good, some days we get bibimbap or fried chicken or seafood soup (with shrimp). my biggest problem at lunch isn't them commenting on what i don't eat, but rather that i'm eating spicy foods Very Happy

last year i didn't eat in the cafe and i think some teachers resented it, but it was a lot more comfortable for me.