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Korean food, decoded

Eat Korea, one bowl at a time.

Tap a bowl to open its world. Read any menu in seconds, know what is in every dish before it lands, and follow each region's signature food to the market that serves it.

Decode a menuBrowse 116 dishes

A Korean table seen from above. Each bowl opens a group of dishes. Rice · 밥 Soups & stews · 국 Sides · 반찬 Grill · 구이 Noodles · 면 Street food · 분식

Free tool

Menu decoder

Paste or type a Korean menu. Every line is broken into its words, translated, and flagged for pork, beef, seafood, egg, alcohol and heat.

The decoder reads 116 menu words. It matches the longest word first, so 김치찌개 reads as kimchi + stew.

Results appear here as you type.

Perfect diversity

116 dishes, eleven worlds

Korean food is not one taste. It is fire and ice, royal banquets and street carts, five-hour bone broths and raw crab, temple vegetables and charcoal pork. Pick a world.

Open the whole encyclopedia

Eat by region

Every town has the dish it is proud of

Travel for these. Then find them in the traditional market where locals buy them.

  1. Seoul 서울

    설렁탕 Seolleongtang

    Ox-bone soup served since the Joseon court. Open early, open late.

  2. Busan 부산

    돼지국밥 Dwaeji gukbap

    Pork-bone soup with rice, plus cold wheat milmyeon in summer.

  3. Jeonju 전주

    전주비빔밥 Jeonju bibimbap

    The bibimbap capital. Breakfast is bean-sprout soup with rice.

  4. Chuncheon 춘천

    닭갈비 Dakgalbi

    Spicy chicken on a giant iron pan, then cold buckwheat makguksu.

  5. Andong 안동

    안동찜닭 Andong jjimdak

    Soy-braised chicken with glass noodles, born in the old market.

  6. Suwon 수원

    수원왕갈비 Suwon wang-galbi

    Giant beef short ribs, a short subway ride from Seoul.

  7. Tongyeong 통영

    충무김밥 Chungmu gimbap

    Plain rice rolls with spicy squid and radish on the side.

  8. Jeju 제주

    흑돼지 Black pork

    Thick-cut black pork grilled over charcoal, dipped in anchovy sauce.

Find the market on Jangteoro

Eating with a diet

Halal, vegetarian and allergies

Halal

Pork is everywhere in Korean food: stews, dumplings, gimbap, sausage and most grills. Order beef, chicken or fish dishes and say “돼지고기 빼 주세요” (no pork, please). Itaewon in Seoul and Busan's mosque district have certified halal restaurants.

Vegetarian & vegan

Kimchi is made with salted seafood, and most soups start from anchovy or beef stock. Say “고기, 생선 빼 주세요” (no meat, no fish). Temple food restaurants serve fully vegan Korean cooking without garlic or onion.

Allergies

Sesame, soy, wheat, egg and shellfish appear in nearly every kitchen. Show a written card in Korean, and keep the decoder open: it flags egg, seafood and dairy on any menu line.

Cook it at home

The eight-jar Korean pantry

With these eight you can cook most dishes on this page, anywhere in the world.

At the table

Six things Koreans do at every meal

  1. Side dishes are freeRefills of kimchi and banchan cost nothing. Ask with “반찬 더 주세요”.
  2. Water is self-serviceLook for the water dispenser and cups near the door.
  3. The eldest startsWait for the oldest person to lift their spoon first.
  4. Spoon for riceRice and soup take the spoon; chopsticks are for side dishes.
  5. No tippingPrices include everything. Pay at the counter on the way out.
  6. Call, don't wavePress the table bell, or say “저기요” to call the server.