[Courtesy of Hanwha Galleria]
There are many foreign brands like McDonald's, Burger King, Papa Jones, and KFC that are favored by picky South Korean customers but the majority of the market is shared by domestic restaurant chains and individual restaurant operators who cook Korean menus or hybrid menus of western and Korean food called "fusion menus."
While young generations in their 20s and 30s favor Western food, older generations favor Korean menus. According to a 2022 survey of 1,004 working people, conducted by South Korean online job placement service provider Recruit, 78.2 percent said that they like to eat Korean meals for lunch. Western chains are often visited when people wish to try different kinds of food.
In January 2023, Wingstop, an American fried chicken wings franchise, boldly made a foray into South Korea where there are more fried chicken stores than convenience stores. As of September 2022, there were more than 650,000 fried chicken stores in the country attracting customers of all ages. Fried chickens are consumed as a meal or as a side dish when people drink beer or Soju, Korean distilled liquor made with rice or potatoes.
Wingstop opened its first store in Gangnam, the heart of South Korea's trends and finance, and is scheduled to open another store near the Seoul National University in June. The American fried wing restaurant chain also partnered with Yogiyo, a popular smartphone food delivery service, to offer customers quick delivery services.
Five Guys, also known in South Korea as one of the United States' top three burger chains, was brought into South Korea by Hanwha Galleria, the retail wing of South Korean conglomerate Hanwha Group. Five Guys will open its very first South Korean store with some 150 table seats in Gangnam in June.
Hanwha Galleria, which was formerly the retail division of Hanwha Solutions, Hanwha Group's chemical and energy wing, suffered critical damage in its duty-free business during the COVID-19 pandemic when there were basically zero customers. The Five Guys business in South Korea is Hanwha Galleria's very first business operation.
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