Unauthorized Takeout at 8,000-Won All-You-Can-Eat Restaurant: "Packed 26 Pork Cutlets Tightly in a Kimchi Container"

A Consumption Structure Born Out of Recession: All-You-Can-Eat Buffets
Moral Hazard and Unauthorized Removal Leave Small Business Owners Sighing
From Recession to Disorder: Consumer Ethics Under Threat

"There was even someone who tried to tightly pack 26 pieces of pork cutlet into an 8-liter kimchi container and take them out."

On the afternoon of April 1, a restaurant near Guro Digital Complex Station in Seoul was packed with over 100 office workers during lunch. While the place operates as a pub after dark, at lunchtime it offers unlimited pork cutlet, jjamppong, sweet and sour pork, and various seasoned vegetables for 8,000 won per person. Despite the stream of customers, manager Kang Pureun (age 33) wore a complicated expression. The notice on the wall—warning that "cases of unauthorized removal of food have been repeatedly detected recently"—reflected his feelings. Kang said, "Just a few days ago, a man in his 30s tried to leave with 17 pieces of pork cutlet hidden on his back, but I caught him because his back was bulging too much," adding, "This kind of incident happens more than once or twice."

On the afternoon of the 1st, a buffet-style restaurant entrance in Guro-gu, Seoul, displayed a notice warning against unauthorized removal of food. The notice included the owner's grievances, such as a case where 26 pork cutlets were taken away in a kimchi container. Photo by Hosoo Park

With the steep rise in dining-out costs, unlimited refill restaurants where you can eat as much as you like after paying a set amount have emerged as a consumer choice. These establishments are operated as a win-win model, helping owners reduce labor costs and customers save on dining expenses, but problems such as unauthorized removal of food have been occurring one after another.

According to the Korea Consumer Agency’s Price Information Portal on April 6, the price of a roll of gimbap in Seoul was 3,800 won as of February this year, a 7.4% increase from a year earlier. Kalguksu (9,962 won) and samgyetang (18,154 won) also rose by 5.3% and 4.7%, respectively. Bibimbap, once considered a staple for ordinary people, was recorded at 11,615 won, and naengmyeon at 12,538 won. There are also analyses that the burden of high oil prices and exchange rates, driven by the recent Middle East crisis, will prolong inflationary pressures.

As wallets grow tighter, it has become trendy among the younger generation to share information about cheap restaurants through a so-called "Geojimap" (literally, "beggar map"), while pubs and other establishments that find it difficult to make ends meet with only evening business are increasingly opening for lunch as well. In office areas like Guro-dong and Gasan-dong, the number of these buffet-style eateries has rapidly increased, with one or two appearing in nearly every building.

On the afternoon of the 1st, office workers are serving food to use the unlimited refill buffet priced at 8,000 won for lunch at a pub in Guro-gu, Seoul. Photo by Hosu Park

In a sluggish economy, buffet-style restaurants that promote unlimited refills rely on voluntary order among patrons. However, lapses in this self-regulation have led to ethical lapses, such as unauthorized packing and removal of food. Jung In-sook (age 59), who runs a Korean buffet near Gasan Digital Complex Station, said, "One regular customer once brought a huge takeout container and was caught stuffing it with seasoned vegetables. My hands were shaking from the sense of betrayal." She added, "Even when I suggested we go to the police station, the person insisted, without a word of apology, that they just wanted to eat it alone for dinner, which drove me crazy."

Customers who secretly take food range in age from their 20s to their 70s. As a result, restaurant owners sometimes share information about habitual offenders who attempt unauthorized removal at multiple establishments. Even if a restaurant offers unlimited side dishes, unauthorized removal is clearly a crime and can be prosecuted as theft.

Owners are particularly sensitive because of their precarious, low-margin business models. Kang said, "We barely make 1,000 won per person," and sighed, "I even announced that anyone in need could come after closing and get a free meal, but no one has asked for help—only the number of people sneaking food out keeps increasing."

The dining-out industry is stuck in a recessionary growth trap, where sales increase but profits decline. According to a 2024 survey on restaurant management by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Korea Rural Economic Institute, the average annual sales per restaurant stood at 255.26 million won, up 41.1% from 2021. However, during the same period, the operating profit margin fell from 12.1% to 8.7%. This is because operating costs such as ingredient and labor expenses rose faster than sales.

Experts point out that distorted consumer behavior, such as unauthorized removal of food, can further worsen the vulnerability of the restaurant industry as a whole. Kim Siwol, professor of consumer studies at Konkuk University, commented, "The new consumption structure created by the recession is now spreading into issues of order, threatening the very survival of small business owners. The moral hazard that has emerged as value-for-money consumption spreads ultimately reveals the sad reality of the breakdown of a win-win order," he diagnosed.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.