The average price of a kimchi stew set meal, a staple of Korean home cooking, has climbed past 9,000 won.
The nationwide average price of a kimchi jjigae set meal stood at 9,080 won in August, according to Price Info, the consumer price portal run by the Korea Consumer Agency, in data released on the 16th. That is up 339 won, or 3.9%, from 8,741 won in September last year. The figure is a simple average of prices in 16 metropolitan cities and provinces compiled by the agency.
Daejeon had the most expensive kimchi stew meals at an average of 10,600 won, while Gwangju was the cheapest at 8,278 won. In Seoul, the price passed the 7,000-won mark in October 2021, the 8,000-won mark in December 2023 and 8,500 won in February 2025, reaching 8,769 won last month.
Prices for major dining-out items were broadly higher than a year earlier. Cold noodles and bibimbap have already topped 10,000 won, and knife-cut noodles have entered the 9,000-won range. As of August, cold noodles cost 10,845 won, up 353 won or 3.4% from a year earlier, while bibimbap rose 228 won, or 2.3%, to 10,314 won. Knife-cut noodles gained 259 won, or 2.9%, to 9,057 won.
Jajangmyeon, or noodles in black bean sauce, cost 7,230 won, up 236 won or 3.4% from a year earlier. Samgyetang, or ginseng chicken soup, rose 400 won, or 2.4%, to 16,868 won, and 200 grams of pork belly, on a converted basis, climbed 436 won, or 2.5%, to 17,877 won.
Lunch Costs Drive Downsized Spending
As "lunchflation" pushes midday meals above 10,000 won, downsized consumption is spreading among young adults, who are buying half-rolls of gimbap or seeking out budget burgers.
A post titled "half-roll gimbap, said to be in growing demand" recently drew attention on online communities. It included photographs of a small foil-wrapped roll and the same roll unwrapped. The post said the item, about five pieces or roughly half a standard roll, sells for about 2,500 won. Commenters said it was reasonable given that a full roll now costs more than 5,000 won, and that it was a good alternative to triangle gimbap.
Analysts say that as lunch costs rise, price-sensitive young adults in particular are increasingly turning to products that cut both portion sizes and prices.
