Coffee in South Korea facts for kids
Coffee in South Korea is a big part of the country's culture. It first arrived in the 1800s. Now, coffee is a very popular drink and a major product sold in South Korea.
Contents
How Coffee Came to Korea
Early Days of Coffee
The first person to try coffee in Korea was King Gojong. This happened in 1896. Antoinette Sontag, who was related to a Russian ambassador, offered him a cup. Koreans were curious about new things from other countries, and coffee was one of them.
Because coffee came from the West and looked a bit like special herbal medicines, it became a sign of being modern. In the past, coffee shops were called "dabang". The very first dabang was opened by Sontag in Seoul in 1902. It was part of the Sontag Hotel.
Dabangs Grow in Popularity
Modern dabangs started appearing around 1927 in Myeongdong. They then spread to other areas like Jongno and Chungmuro. At first, only the royal family and important people could go to dabangs. Later, they became places for politicians, artists, and business people to meet.
Koreans loved dabangs because it was a new experience. They enjoyed using forks to eat cake and drinking coffee from teacups. This was different from using chopsticks and drinking traditional soup from bowls.
Coffee for Everyone
In the mid-1900s, dabangs were still mainly meeting spots. Coffee was too expensive for most people. Before coffee shops, important people met in kisaeng houses. Regular people met in jumak to talk about their lives.
Dabangs became centers for discussions about politics, culture, and art. Because of this, the Korean government sometimes limited who could visit them.
Coffee became available to more people during the Korean War (1950–1953). The U.S. military brought instant coffee to Korea. After the war, instant coffee became very common. Many Koreans started to enjoy it and became regular coffee drinkers.
Coffee and Culture Changes
In the 1960s, coffee became very valuable. This was because a government change in 1961 led to rules against using foreign products. However, dabangs became more open to middle-class people. Even though they were still mostly for adults, they became popular places for young couples to go on dates.
The first themed dabang was likely a music dabang in the 1970s. These places had disk jockeys who played music requested by customers. This gave college students a sense of freedom.
In the 1980s, dabangs started to compete more. They added special decorations like pink lights and indoor waterfalls. They also changed their look and menu. Dark dabangs with dividers became bright and cozy. New coffee shops started calling themselves "cafés" to be different. They focused on various types of coffee instead of traditional teas.
Starbucks Arrives
In the 1990s, people wanted cafés with cleaner designs and professional coffee. A big change happened in 1999 when Starbucks opened its first store in Seoul. Starbucks brought new ideas to Korea, like taking coffee to go and serving yourself. It also made it okay to stay alone in a café to read or study.
After Starbucks, more foreign coffee chains came to Korea. Many local cafés and small, private shops also opened. Each one had its own special style.
How Koreans Drink Coffee
Coffee Shops Everywhere
By 2015, there were about 49,600 coffee shops in South Korea. About 17,000 of these were in Seoul. This means Seoul has more coffee shops per person than cities like Seattle or San Francisco. In 2013, Koreans bought about 657,000 tons of coffee. Each person drank about 2.3 kilograms of coffee that year.
Instant coffee is a huge part of coffee drinking in Korea. Many famous brands compete in this market. Korea also improved the way instant coffee is made, especially freeze-drying. This method helps keep the coffee flavor. In 2003, instant coffee made up 90% of all coffee consumed.
When big coffee chains like Starbucks arrived in the late 1990s, people started drinking more freshly brewed coffee. Going to Starbucks became a way to experience Western culture. Many young and middle-class Koreans started visiting Starbucks often.
Coffee and Korean Culture
The most popular coffee in Korea is Iced Americano, no matter the weather. Even in winter, Koreans love to drink it. Some reports say that more Iced Americanos are sold in winter than warm drinks. There's even a phrase for this: 'Eoljukah'. It means "iced coffee even if I freeze to death."
This drink is popular because of Korea's fast-paced lifestyle. Iced Americano is made quickly, which suits people who are always on the go. In 2019, a study found that Koreans drink about 353 cups of coffee per year. This is twice the worldwide average.
Buddhism and Coffee
Korean Buddhists have also started drinking more coffee. Today, in some major monasteries, more than half of the monks drink coffee during meditation. Making and sharing coffee with visitors is also seen as a way for Buddhism to stay connected with modern society.
Monks often prefer hand-drip coffee. This type of coffee is linked to Korean high-culture. Also, making hand-drip coffee involves many steps, similar to a tea ceremony. Some monasteries, like Puramsa and Torisa, have even opened their own cafés.
Popular Coffee Brands
The rise of coffee shops has changed traditional dabangs. Besides large international chains, local businesses have also grown. In 2014, South Korea had 17,000 coffee shops. Seoul had more Starbucks stores than any other city, even New York.
Starbucks
Starbucks opened its first store in Korea in 1999. Since 2011, it has been opening about 80 new stores each year. Many Koreans see coffee and Starbucks as a lifestyle choice. It has become a symbol of status in Seoul. Building owners often want a Starbucks in their buildings to make them more valuable.
Not all new Starbucks locations were welcomed easily. In 2001, Starbucks opened a store in Insa-dong. Local shop owners were against it. They felt it would harm Insa-dong's identity as a place for Korean culture. They also worried Starbucks would take customers from traditional teahouses. After talks, Starbucks opened the store. This Starbucks is special because it's the only one with a Korean sign. Its windows have traditional wooden patterns, and inside, there are Korean cultural items.
Starbucks Korea is the fourth largest market for Starbucks, with 1,611 stores and nearly 20,000 workers. In January 2022, workers raised concerns about their well-being. Starbucks Korea then promised to hire 1,600 more workers.
Starbucks in Korea started "Siren Order" in 2014. This service lets customers order online before they arrive. They can pick up their drinks as soon as they get to the store. Almost 5 million customers have registered for this service. Because it was so popular, Starbucks added Siren Order to its services in the United States, Canada, Hong Kong, and the United Kingdom.
To help the environment, Starbucks stores in South Korea plan to stop using all single-use cups by 2025. Stores on Jeju Island are leading this effort. They only use reusable cups. Customers can use their own cups or pay a small deposit for a reusable cup. The deposit is returned when the cup is brought back. A special company cleans the reusable cups. This helps reduce waste.
About 60% of Starbucks stores in Korea are cashless, meaning they don't use cash. This has greatly reduced the number of people paying with cash. While most customers use cards or mobile apps, Starbucks still accepts cash for older people and tourists on rare occasions. This change makes things easier for both customers and staff.
Starbucks Korea announced on October 16, 2024, that it will work with KB Kookmin Bank to offer new payment services next year. On October 28, Starbucks Korea also announced that prices for 11 tall (355ml) iced drinks would increase by 200 won starting November 1.
Special Partnerships
BTS, a famous music group, worked with Starbucks to help young people in South Korea. Starbucks offered special purple-colored drinks and items. They also played BTS's song "Make It Right" in stores. Through this event, Starbucks raised money to support The Beautiful Foundation.
Caffé Bene
Caffe Bene is a large coffeehouse chain from Seoul. It was started in May 2008 by Sun-Kwon Kim. Caffé Bene is the biggest coffeehouse chain in South Korea by the number of stores. By April 2012, it had 760 locations.
At first, Caffé Bene had trouble becoming well-known in the American market. To gain attention, Sun-Kwon Kim made a deal with TV shows. His coffee shops were used as filming locations in exchange for a small share of the company's profits.
Ediya
Ediya is a coffee chain with mid-range prices. It had about 1,800 stores in South Korea by 2016. It was founded in 2001 by CEO Moon Chang-ki. In 2019, Ediya Coffee partnered with Kakao Friends, which are popular characters from the Korean messaging app KakaoTalk.
Special Partnerships
In 2019, Ediya Coffee worked with Kakao Friends. These characters are very popular and have their own stores selling toys and other items. The partnership was a big success. In March 2018, Ediya Coffee launched "Peach Blossom Latte" and "Peach Blossom Tea" for spring. In May, they released nine types of merchandise, like character tumblers and water bottles. These items cost between 1,100 KRW and 12,900 KRW (about $0.89 to $10.46 USD). In 2019, Ediya Coffee also released three mini cakes shaped like popular characters (Apeach, Ryan, and Tube). Each cake had a different flavor and cost 3,500 KRW (about $2.84 USD). These cakes, which go well with coffee, were very popular.
Other Coffee Chains
- 7-Eleven: This international convenience store offers coffee at a competitive price of 1,000 won (about $0.87).
- Pascucci: Caffe Pascucci is an Italian coffeehouse chain with over 480 stores in South Korea.
- Hollys: Hollys is a South Korean coffeehouse chain that started in 1998.
- Paik's Coffee:
- A Twosome Place: A Twosome Place is a coffeehouse chain that was owned by CJ Group until 2021. Since January 2022, it has been owned by The Carlyle Group.
- Special Partnerships: Since 2017, A Twosome Place has worked with TWG to focus on the growing tea market. For its 20th anniversary, A Twosome Place partnered with Mardi Mercredi. They used yogurt in their menu items to represent the taste of spring. They also created special cups, water bottles, and rugs with flower patterns.
- Paul Bassett: This coffeehouse brand operates in Japan and South Korea. It is named after Paul Bassett, an Australian barista who won a World Barista Championship.
- Tom N Toms: Tom N Toms is an international coffeehouse chain that started in South Korea.
New Coffee Trends
Dalgona Coffee
Dalgona is a traditional Korean hard candy made from sugar and baking soda. Dalgona Coffee is different. Instead of the candy, it's made by whipping coffee and sugar into a creamy foam. This foam is then put on top of milk.
Dalgona coffee became very popular during the COVID-19 pandemic. People were staying home for safety reasons. Many were looking for fun and productive things to do. Making Dalgona coffee was perfect because it required a lot of stirring (at least 400 times!). It was a creative way to make "coffee shop" style coffee at home.
People started sharing videos of themselves making Dalgona coffee online. This became a "Dalgona coffee challenge" trend on social media like Google, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. It spread not only in Korea but also around the world. Even after the pandemic, many coffee shops in Korea added Dalgona coffee to their menus. For example, Ediya Coffee launched "Dalgona latte" in May 2020.
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