Twenty Pork Gukbap Spots Chosen for World Rankings... "Busan Pork Gukbap Festival" Kicks Off

From Gukbap Recommendations to Talk, Week, and Showcase: Four Stages Unfold

"Every Pork Gukbap Restaurant in Busan Becomes a Festival Venue"

The world rankings for pork gukbap are about to be revealed. A global contest will be held where citizens will recommend and vote on their favorite pork gukbap restaurants in Busan to choose the city’s "representative gukbap."

On August 25, the Busan Metropolitan Government (Mayor: Jeon Jae-soo) and the Busan Tourism Organization (President: Lee Jeong-sil) announced that they will hold the "2026 Busan Pork Gukbap Festival" for the first time this year to establish pork gukbap as a leading culinary tourism attraction in Busan.

This event is being organized to transform pork gukbap, which has long been part of daily life for Busan residents, from a simple food into content that links local lifestyle, culture, and tourism.

Pork gukbap is considered one of the representative local dishes of Busan. Each restaurant offers distinct flavors and preparations in both soup and meat, which means visitors can experience various versions of pork gukbap across the city—a unique appeal in itself.

The "Busan Pork Gukbap Festival" will narrow down the best pork gukbap restaurants through public recommendation and voting. Twenty standout restaurants will be selected based on recommendations from both citizens and tourists, followed by a vote to decide the TOP10 and then the TOP3. The event unfolds in four stages, from August to October: a recommendation survey, the Gukbap Talk, Gukbap Week, and the Gukbap Showcase.

The first stage, the pork gukbap recommendation survey, runs until August 29. Anyone who loves Busan’s pork gukbap—not just citizens—can participate. Online recommendations can be made through comments on YouTube and Instagram posts, while offline surveys will be conducted at traditional markets and other locations. The 20 representatives will be selected based on both the nominated restaurants and the stories behind them, together with "gukbap lovers."

On September 19, the "Gukbap Talk" will be held, bringing together the representatives from the 20 selected restaurants, their nominators (the gukbap lovers), and culinary experts. They will discuss what makes each restaurant’s pork gukbap special, share recommendations, and introduce the diverse charms of Busan’s pork gukbap to a wider audience. The event will be produced as video content and released to the public.

From September 28 to October 14, the "Gukbap Week" will take place. Citizens and tourists can visit the 20 selected restaurants and cast their votes for the TOP10 and TOP3, either in person or via KakaoMap.

The final stage, the "Gukbap Showcase," will be held at Busan BIFC2 from October 16 to 18. The event will feature a variety of programs, including pork gukbap sampling booths and cooking shows, allowing people to enjoy Busan pork gukbap firsthand.

On October 17, the "Gukbap Awards" will announce the three best pork gukbap restaurants of the year, based on the results of the Gukbap Week voting.

This festival is noteworthy in that it makes pork gukbap restaurants throughout Busan the stage for a citywide celebration. The event aims to encourage citizens and visitors to explore the actual restaurants, discover local businesses, and integrate food with regional tourism by suggesting visits to the surrounding commercial districts and attractions.

Na Yoon-bin, Director of Tourism MICE at Busan City, explained, "We are reinterpreting Busan’s iconic dish, pork gukbap, as interactive tourism content and connecting restaurants and commercial districts throughout Busan into a single tour route."

He emphasized, "We will continue to discover Busan’s diverse culinary assets—including seafood, traditional markets, and local ingredients—and develop them into unique tourism content that can only be experienced in Busan."

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