Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Captain Corea]

This article got me thinking... I don't think I'd come here for the food. I dig many Korean dishes, but I don't think I'd ever yearn for them. As a tourist, Korea doesn't come to mind when I think of cuisine.



edit: a few stories down, I ran across this

[optik404]

No, mainly because you can get every single Korean dish back where I'm from. The land of the free.

[El Bandito]

[wings]

I was interviewed on the street and asked to say 1 word that came to mind when I thought of Korea. When I said "kimchi" they said, "uh, ok" can you look at this list of words and choose one of those?" Then I chose one of their words. I think that kind of biased survey might explain the strange results.

[fermentation]

I grew up eating Korean food so a lot of Korean dishes have that element of comfort for me and even so I wouldn't return to Korea just for the food if I lived in a country where I can buy Korean food. Unlike a lot of Koreans, I don't have the need to eat Korean food everyday and I could make most of what I wanted in the States anyway.

[mayorhaggar]

Main thing that would help is if Korean restaurants would do more to have English menus, especially ones that weren't mangled. (a place near me translates their very good bulgogi as "taste the feel of raw meat" or something crazy like that.) I know it's not easy for the restaurant owners but if the government really cares they'd help out more, like maybe provide a service that does translations. That would probably be too logical though.

I like Korean food but I really only go to places that I know I like and where I know what's on the menu. I can read hangeul but every dish has a unique name that you can't translate easily, often in an idiosyncratic form. It's kinda like how we use terms like hamburger, or chuck roast, not "grilled ground beef between two buns with veggies and condiments." I enjoy trying new things but I just don't like tentacles, so I'm hesitant to pick something random on a menu without pictures. In my town I often eat Korean food because I know what's available, but when I'm in a big city like Seoul or Busan I just end up eating good foreign food a lot--Indian, Mexican, etc. I'd love to try more Korean food but it's just frustrating compared to going into some burrito place in Busan where the menu is in Korean and English. Plus all the elaborate banchan pads out the eating time a lot...it's great ceremony when you have time to sit with friends, but when I'm being a tourist in Seoul I'd rather just grab a sandwich for lunch.

[Smithington]

I would never visit any country for the food. Food simply isn't that important to me. I could visit France, Italy or Cambodia and barely touch the food and still have a great cultural experience. I travel to see historic buildings, experience the culture, and so forth. The cuisine is down at the very bottom of my list. In fact, food tourism is utterly baffling to me. And although I like Korean food, I can't see many people jumping on airplanes to get a bowl of bibimbap.

[IPayInCash]

Korean food sucks.

Probably tied with Philippines for worst food in Asia.

Remember that time Steelrails argued with me that kimchi isn't representative of Korean food? That was a classic Steelrails FAIL.

[happiness]

The KOREAN toruism board CHOSE food to (grasp at straws again) draw in tourism, not probably lacking a bit with the new Chinese travel laws.

Chicago has great Korean food. Shin Nippori in Tokyo has great Korean food. Hawaii has some great restaurants.

I love Korean food. But I love many foods. I CANT live with Dwenjang Jigae, like I cant live without real Japanese ramen/yakisoba/curry, and I cant live without Greek Gyros, Mongolian Buus, Russian perogis.

Noone would travel for food, come on. This is 2013, the worlds food is in all the bigger cities.

I was just wasting time reading this from 7 years ago.
http://www.rjkoehler.com/2006/08/01/korea-boring/

Why I wouldnt be that crude (boring ppl live boirng lives), I would say that I agree with the comment that Korea was not set up for tourism, but to serve its own industrial dreams, with the people being educated (even with the English craze/"global" buzzwords) to serve as cogs in this big machine

Now with the internet rise and the "virtual" (but not mental) end to the "hermit" part of the kingdom, they realize they need tourism to be beyond the U.S. military personal. I think its a bit of Cultural Imperialism and that they pine for the white man to come, but if they were smart, theyd continue to work the Japanese and Chinese route. K-pop worked for a bit, but as far as dollars, Im not sure.

I dont think anyone would travel for ethnic food, but then again, theyre not working with alot here.

[KimchiNinja]

Meh, Korea is an obscure country in the mind of Westerners.

Westerners know about Japan; they think sushi, healthy eating, thin people, long life spans. Tourists might be interested in exploring that, because food is an important consideration in a vacation for many people.

Koreans are actually probably healthier than Japanese, and have very interesting food as well, but for people in the West it just ain't on the radar.

Asian tourists maybe...

[KimchiNinja]

[geldedgoat]

[Steelrails]

[IPayInCash]

[Captain Corea]