Eating

Ordering food in Korea, when the kiosk only speaks Korean

The hardest part of ordering food in Korea is not the food and not the language. It is that a growing share of restaurants have replaced the person who would have helped you with a touchscreen that only speaks Korean, and it is standing between you and lunch while a queue forms behind you. There are four ordering systems in use here. Each one has a way through, and none of them requires you to read Korean.

The four systems

The standing kiosk. A screen near the door, usually in fast food, noodle shops, cafes and anywhere with high turnover. Look for a globe icon, or the letters EN, or a row of flags, most often along the top edge or bottom corner. Many machines have English and simply do not advertise it. If there is nothing, photograph the screen and use your phone's camera translation on the photo rather than trying to translate the live view while people wait.

Kiosks usually take cards. Some take only cards. A few take only Korean payment apps, and those are the ones to walk away from.

The tablet on the table. Common in barbecue, chicken and pub food. Tap what you want, tap the confirm button, and the kitchen receives it. Tablets have English more often than standing kiosks do. The advantage is that nobody is waiting behind you, so you can work through it slowly.

The button on the table. A physical bell, or a call button on the tablet. Press it and someone comes. This is the correct way to get attention in a Korean restaurant and pressing it is not rude. Where there is no button, 저기요 (jeogiyo) said at conversational volume is the normal way to call a server. Raising your hand quietly gets you ignored for a very long time.

The counter. In older restaurants you order at the table and pay at the counter on the way out, not at the table. Standing at your table waiting for a bill that is never coming is the single most common visitor mistake in a Korean restaurant. The bill is usually on your table already, face down or in a small tray.

The rules nothing tells you

Two portions minimum. Stews, barbecue and most shared dishes are priced per person and sold with a minimum of two. A solo traveller ordering barbecue may be turned away, and it is not personal. Noodle shops, gimbap places, rice bowls and fried chicken are all fine alone.

The side dishes are free, including refills. The small plates that arrive unordered are banchan and they come with the meal. Asking for more is normal and costs nothing. Ask by pointing at the empty dish and saying 더 주세요 (deo juseyo), more please. Taking them home is not.

The water is free and you pour it. There is a dispenser or a jug and a stack of cups, usually near the entrance or by the counter. Nobody will bring it. In cheaper places the cutlery is in a drawer under the table edge.

There is no tipping. Not in restaurants, not in cafes, not for delivery. Leaving money on the table produces someone chasing you down the street with it. The rest of what happens at a Korean table - shoes, pouring, who pays - is in the everyday etiquette guide.

What things cost

Enough of an anchor to know when a price is normal.

A normal sit-down lunch in Seoul lands between those and roughly double the second. Somewhere charging a lot more than that is either doing something unusual or is in a tourist district, and both are worth knowing before you sit down.

Allergies, and eating without meat

This is the part where honesty is more useful than encouragement.

Korean cooking uses anchovy and beef stock as a base very widely, including in dishes that appear vegetable-based. Kimchi commonly contains fermented shrimp or fish sauce. A dish with no visible meat is not evidence of anything, and a kitchen asked whether a soup is vegetarian may answer about the visible ingredients rather than the stock.

If an allergy is serious, the reliable move is not to explain it in the restaurant. It is to have it written out in Korean before you travel, on your phone, naming the specific ingredient and stating that it is medical. Hand over the phone rather than speaking. Restaurants respond well to a written note and poorly to a complicated conversation during a lunch rush.

Delivery, and why it probably will not work

Korea's delivery apps are excellent and largely closed to you. They require a Korean phone number for sign-up and a Korean payment method at checkout, which is the same wall described in the declined card guide. Some hotels will order on your behalf. Otherwise, the convenience store on the corner is open, has hot food, and is genuinely good.

Quick answers: ordering food in Korea

How do I order at a Korean restaurant kiosk with no English?

Look for a globe icon, EN or a row of flags, usually along the top or bottom edge - many machines have English without advertising it. If there is none, photograph the screen and run camera translation on the photo. Kiosks usually take cards.

Can I eat alone at a Korean restaurant?

Usually, but not everywhere. Stews, barbecue and most shared dishes are priced per person with a two-portion minimum, and a solo diner may be turned away. Noodle shops, gimbap places, rice bowls and fried chicken are all fine alone.

Are side dishes free in Korean restaurants?

Yes. The banchan that arrive unordered come with the meal, and refills are free - point at the empty dish and say 더 주세요 (deo juseyo). Water is also free and self-service. Taking side dishes home is not done.

How do I call a waiter in Korea?

Press the bell on the table, or say 저기요 (jeogiyo) at conversational volume. Both are normal and not rude. Raising a hand quietly gets you ignored.

Do Korean food delivery apps work for tourists?

Generally not. They need a Korean phone number to sign up and a Korean payment method at checkout. Some hotels will order for you; otherwise the convenience store has hot food at any hour.

Figures on this page come from Korea Consumer Agency price survey, Korea Tourism Organization 1330 Travel Hotline. Checked against the published source on the date below.

LAST VERIFIED 15 AUGUST 2026