Kim Soo-jin, 41, a mother of two living in Seoul, said she is looking forward to visiting her parents in Busan for the Chuseok holiday next week, but is worried about the price of meals at highway rest stops.
“My kids love stopping for deep-fried pork cutlets, or stir-fried potatoes and walnut cakes,” she said. “A family of four having lunch and likely dinner at the highway rest areas and a couple snacks can cost well over 150,000 won ($106). That is burdensome.”
Food prices, along with the cost of everything else, has been going up for the past few years, she said.
“I thought the food cost was very high last year, but this year I’m practically stunned. I recently had a stop at the highway rest area during a business trip and the pork cutlet cost over 12,000 won. It was frustrating because the portion size was small. A small cup of coffee or other beverages are at least 5,000 won. I think we might have to skip dessert.”
Similarly, Park Jin-ho, 45, plans to drive from Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, to Haenam, South Jeolla Province, with his mother, wife and their teenage son.
“I remember a bowl of gukbap (a Korean dish consisting of hot soup with cooked rice) and something to drink cost under 10,000 won together,” he said. “Now just the gukbap alone costs that much or more.”
He is also worried about the fuel price.
“Gasoline is expensive, and now even a bowl of gukbap or noodles is almost 10,000 won. Multiply that by four. With snacks and beverages here and there the cost really adds up. Rest stops used to be a fun part of the trip. Now, I have to worry about how much I would have to spend there.”
These citizens are among many who are finding the cost of feeding their families on the road stressful.
According to data submitted to Rep. Min Hong-chul of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, the average price of the top 10 best-selling food items at rest areas was 6,342 won as of June, up 12.5 percent from 2021.
This is a far bigger increase compared to the country’s overall consumer price inflation rate of 8.3 percent over the same period.
The average pork cutlet price, in particular, has jumped to 11,218 won this year, up 25.1 percent from 8,916 won in 2021.
Other menus like udon noodles, bibimbap (mixed rice with vegetables) and instant noodles have also climbed by double-digit percentages.
“With the Chuseok holiday only a week away, we need to look into the cause of menu price hikes at the highway rest areas and put in place measures to ensure prices stay stable,” Rep. Min said.