This week’s episode is a companion to my newsletter essay, not an audio version of it. Read the essay and listen to the episode together, and you’ll get the fuller picture.

The newsletter tells the broader story of how honbap, eating alone in Korea, moved from quiet embarrassment to restaurants, map filters, one-person menus, and a visible part of modern Korean life.

The podcast takes a slightly different route. Here, I slow down and ask what it feels like to eat alone in a culture where eating together has carried so much meaning. Why did one person at a table ever look awkward? When does eating alone become freedom? When does it become loneliness? And when is it simply lunch, which in Korea is almost never simply lunch?

Read the full newsletter essay here.

💬 I’d really love to hear what this brought up for you. Come find me here and share your thoughts, stories, or questions.

Understanding Korea, One Story at a Time is written and hosted by Jiwon Yoon. New episodes every week, alongside the newsletter.

Korean Words and Phrases in This Episode

안녕하세요, 반갑습니다 (annyeonghaseyo, bangapseumnida)Hello, nice to meet you. A warm Korean greeting used at the beginning of the episode.

혼밥 (honbap)Eating alone. A combination of honja (alone) and bap (meal/rice). Literally, something like “solo meal” or “solo rice.”

혼자 (honja)Alone or by oneself.

밥 (bap)Rice, but also meal. In Korean, bap often carries emotional meaning beyond food itself.

밥 먹었어? (bap meogeosseo?)Did you eat? In Korean culture, this can also mean “Are you okay?” or “Are you taking care of yourself?”

밥은 먹고 다녀? (babeun meokgo danyeo?)Are you eating these days? A caring, worried question often used when someone seems tired, busy, or not okay.

뭐라도 먹어야지 (mworado meogeoyaji)You should eat something. A common Korean expression of care, especially when someone is struggling.

부대찌개 (budae jjigae)A spicy Korean stew often shared at the table. It is sometimes translated as “army base stew” because of its postwar history and ingredients.

전골 (jeongol)Korean hot pot or shared stew, usually cooked and eaten from a large pot at the table.

반찬 (banchan)Korean side dishes served with a meal, often placed in the middle of the table and shared.

눈치 (nunchi)Social radar, or the ability to read the room. It means sensing mood, expectations, and unspoken social cues.

회식 (hoesik)A workplace dinner or after-work gathering, often involving coworkers, hierarchy, drinking, and social obligations.

혼자 점심 먹는 사람을 위한 산문 (honja jeomsim meokneun sarameul wihan sanmun)Prose for Those Who Eat Lunch Alone. A 2024 Korean essay anthology by ten writers, with fifty short essays about lunch, solitude, work, food, and the inner life of eating alone.

오늘도 들어주셔서 감사합니다 (oneuldo deureojusyeoseo gamsahamnida)Thank you for listening today.

다음 주에 만나요 (daeum jue mannayo)See you next week.