What is your favorite Korean food? Have you had kimchi before?
These are frequent questions I get asked as a student studying abroad in Seoul, South Korea.
Already, I have tried a variety of new foods such as raw marinated crab and live octopus while visiting the port city of Busan. With this being said, going out to fun meals everyday does not match up with the student life. Luckily in Korea, we have a wide array of shops that are at your service!
Whether through social media or from word-of-mouth, you have probably heard the hype around convenient stores in Asia. The most common convenient stores you will see are 7-Eleven, CU, and GS25. In my opinion, all are good for different reasons.
My first time to Korea was in 2023, and after that trip I was an adamant 7-Eleven fan. Now, my favorite store is CU. This may be because there is a CU mart right below our building…
On a typical day, I would say I go to a convenient store at least once. Before classes, you can usually catch me grabbing a protein shake. Between classes, if hungry, I grab a tuna kimbap (rice and other fillings rolled in seaweed). For dinner, I try to go out, but it would not surprise me to learn that some students eat three meals a day here. Convenient store food is usually affordable and tasty. For reference, my kimbap usually costs less than 1 USD!
Although these places are convenient, I sometimes find myself uninterested in ready-made foods. There is a saying here called sohn-mat (hand taste). The meaning goes deeper as it refers to the types of dishes that are prepared with love and care. Do not get me wrong, the kimbaps hit the spot, but they do not have sohn-mat!
While moving to a new place, it is important to keep your regular eating schedule. While convenient stores are here for a reason, I urge you to try to get out there and explore! Seoul has so many exciting foods to offer.
Scout K is a Global Studies and Communications student. She is studying abroad at Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea.