Short Chuseok Holiday Set to Lift Food and Liquor Delivery

With this year's Chuseok holiday running just four days including the weekend, more people are expected to stay home rather than travel long distances. That shift is drawing attention to "sharing" menus meant for several people and "pairing" menus served with alcohol in the delivery market. Demand for easy meals and gatherings at home is likely to translate into delivery orders.

Yogiyo said on the 23rd that its analysis of delivery orders during last year's Chuseok holiday showed a rise in orders for group menus such as pizza and fried chicken. Orders for pizza and Western food rose 21.8% from the previous week. Burger and chicken orders climbed 13.8% and 13.0%, respectively.

Yogiyo expects that pattern to stand out even more this year, as the holiday is shorter than last year's. With more people spending the holiday at home instead of returning to their hometowns, demand for delivery food that several people can share could grow, the company said. In a recent survey of 1,000 adults aged 20 to 69 conducted by research and data firm PMI ahead of Chuseok, "resting at home" was the most common holiday plan at 59.6% in a multiple-response question. It was followed by visiting one's hometown at 40.0%, domestic travel at 18.9%, hobbies at 12.5%, meeting friends and acquaintances at 10.7% and overseas travel at 6.0%.

Chicken, pizza, braised pork trotters and boiled pork wraps are among the menus expected to draw the heaviest orders over the holiday. Spicy braised seafood and braised monkfish, along with other stews and soups that cut through the richness of holiday dishes, are also expected to gain attention as family meals.

Liquor delivery orders set to rise

As more people drink at home with family and friends, side dishes that go with alcohol are also expected to prove popular. Yogiyo's liquor delivery orders rose 13.9% from the previous week during last year's Chuseok holiday. By type, orders for cheongju, a clear Korean rice wine, and fruit wine rose 28%, while Chinese baijiu orders increased 15.92%. Beer and soju orders rose 15.53% and 14.11%, respectively.

Demand for after-meal desserts is also expected to grow. During last year's Chuseok holiday, ice cream orders surged 90.1% from the previous week. Cafe latte orders rose 82.6%, showing strong demand for desserts as well as meals. Yogiyo expects dessert orders this year to continue as well, including large tubs of ice cream and multi-serving coffee sets that families can share.

"Chuseok in 2026 is effectively a slightly longer weekend, so a range of delivery demand will be concentrated into a short period," a Yogiyo official said. "Preparing set menus that families can enjoy together and side dishes that pair well with alcohol before the holiday begins would be an effective way to capture Chuseok delivery demand."