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North Korea

Food, Dining, & Drinks

WARNING: North Korea is unstable, please read this travel warning before going!

Dining Etiquette

Dining in North Korea is unique to much of the world. While dining etiquette at the table itself are similar to that of South Korea, many social protocols are very different. First, and the most obvious difference is that in North Korea you will not be allowed to eat at a local's home and if you could, it is highly unlikely you'll get such an invitation since many locals are fearful of foreigners and are unlikely to take such a risk. More so, most locals won't even be willing to dine with you in public at one of the country's few restaurants.

If, on the off chance you do get to dine with locals, wait to be shown a seat as seating arrangements may be pre-arranged or dictated by social standing. The oldest person present should begin dining, so wait until invited to begin eating or until everyone else is already eating. If you are being served drinks, which may or may not be the case, fill the glass of those around you and let them fill your glass (although women should not fill other women's glasses). If drinks are served with food, it tends to be either tea or water, rarely is it an alcoholic beverage. Throughout the course of the meal, if you decide to take a drink or even speak to those around you, put your chopsticks down.

Even if you aren't eating with locals, but are in public at a restaurant, you should follow some rules so you aren't disrespectful to the restaurant staff. Of course, if a restaurant allows you in the door as a foreigner, you are most likely with a government tour guide and the restaurant is used to foreigners so you can probably get away with some poor manners although this will not be accepted well by neither the wait staff nor your government-issued host. If you're given a small plate, it is essentially a "discard tray," on which you should place bones, shells, etc. The chopsticks are obviously for eating the food and you may want to become accustomed to using these before arrival as touching food with your hands is off limits. If served both rice and a spoon, eat the rice with the spoon. Unlike many Far East countries, don't bring the rice or soup bowl up to your mouth, but leave these on the table itself. When you do finally finish eating, place your chopsticks back on your chopstick rest and eat everything you've taken, even the last grain of rice.

If you're lucky enough to get into North Korea and get to sample the local foods, you'll surely notice that there is no such thing as fast food or "ethnic" foods as little to no outside culinary influence has entered North Korea since about 1950.

For restaurant tipping information, read North Korea's Expenses & Tipping section.

History & Influences

North Korean food is based on what they people had available years ago. This was essentially just barley and millet, local vegetables, some meats, and beans. Despite these commonalities, the country's climate is fairly complex for the small land area it occupies and each part of the country grows different foods better depending on the mountains, water exposure, and ocean currents. North Korea, being particularly mountainous has difficulties growing a number of items, making their diet hardier than that of the south's.

Hundreds of year ago, due to the Chinese entering the peninsula, rice was introduced and overtook barley and millet in popularity, except in mountainous towns where rice didn't grow well. Pork and seafood also grew in popularity at that time, as did beef, although beef has never become overly popular.

Later, in the 500s with the introduction of Buddhism to the Korean peninsula, meats almost entirely fell off the menu, but have since returned, although not in significant quantities in the north. What this change did though, especially due to Korea's location as a peninsula, is increase the amount of fish and seafood consumed in the diet.

Shockingly, since the 500s few significant changes have taken place. As was traditional, even today there are few national dishes (although exceptions exist) as regional dishes dominate locals' homes. Meals are commonly served in multiple small meals as opposed to large entrees and often include at least one soup or stew, which are every popular in North Korea.

Unlike many countries though, North Korea is extremely isolated and is saddled with a number of trade embargoes, preventing new foods from entering the country. Fast food is unheard of today and due to their lack of arable farm lands, their diet is severely limited, particularly in times of drought. Meats are expensive and are nearly inaccessible except for the government's elite. North Korean cuisine today is fairly authentic to their historic roots as it continues to be very susceptible to climate changes and hence, availability.

Staple Foods

Noodles: are commonly made from wheat, rice, or buckwheat
Rice: a common side or base with many dishes

Regional Varieties & Specialties

Kimchi: fermented vegetables with a variety of seasonings; there are well over 100 versions

Drinks

The North Koreans only drink what is available in the country and that reaches back to their traditional drinks, including ginseng, ginger, and fruit drinks. Some beers are available as is soju, a local alcohol. Sikhye may also be found in some locations; this is a sweet rice drink.

Since many countries ban trade with North Korea so the alcoholic options are severely limited. A traditional Korean alcohol is soju, which is a liquor distilled from rice.

This page was last updated: November, 2011