Free, unlimited banchan has long been a hallmark of Korean dining, but with rising food prices, more restaurant owners are questioning if they can continue offering complimentary refills.
In a poll currently running on a Naver cafe for self-employed people, 38.5 percent of the 1,353 respondents voted in favor of charging refills as of Tuesday noon; a majority of 61.5 percent were still against it.
The online survey, neither conducted by a registered pollster nor large in scope, has drawn outsized media attention as restaurateurs face growing financial pressure from sluggish domestic consumption and rising food prices. Many banchan dishes rely on vegetables such as lettuce and perilla leaves, which in recent years have become prone to price fluctuations amid agflation.
“Delivery-focused eateries already are charging for additional side dishes,” one person, who supports charging for banchan, commented.
“Higher vegetable prices make it hard to offer unlimited refills, especially when some customers keep asking for more," another supporter said.
Recent data backs up these cost pressures.
According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation, as of Jan. 23, lettuce costs 1,417 won (98 cents) per 100 grams, which is 41 percent more than a year ago. Cheongyang chili peppers and perilla leaves have also gone up by 11.4 percent and 7.3 percent, respectively.
These challenges for small businesses are also seen in the drop in self-employment.
Government data show that the number of self-employed workers dropped to 5.62 million last year, down by 38,000 from the year before. This was the biggest drop since 2020.
Still, many customers expect free side dishes, so charging extra might lead to complaints.
“Customers would stop coming if restaurants began charging even for extra side dishes,” one respondent wrote.
Another said, “This change might make more people eat at home instead of dining out.”
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