Korean food delivery is genuinely different from what most countries have. Thirty minutes is normal, minimum orders are low, and drivers will find you in a park, on a riverbank, or on the twelfth floor of an office building at midnight.
Most of it happens through apps now, which means the Korean you need is mostly reading rather than speaking.
The apps
배달의민족 is the largest. The interface is Korean-only, but it is navigable with a translation app and the layout is consistent.
요기요 and 쿠팡이츠 are the main alternatives.
The practical barrier is not language — it is that these apps usually require a Korean phone number and a Korean payment method. Visitors often order through a Korean friend, or use the hotel front desk.
Words on the order screen
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 배달 | delivery |
| 포장 | takeout |
| 최소주문금액 | minimum order |
| 배달비 | delivery fee |
| 배달 시간 | delivery time |
| 리뷰 | reviews |
| 요청사항 | special requests |
| 결제 | payment |
요청사항 is the free-text box, and it is worth using:
- 안 맵게 해 주세요. — Please make it not spicy.
- 일회용품 안 주셔도 돼요. — No disposable utensils needed.
- 문 앞에 놔 주세요. — Please leave it at the door.
If you call instead
Some smaller places still take phone orders.
- 배달 되나요? — Do you deliver?
- 후라이드 치킨 한 마리 주세요. — One whole fried chicken, please.
- 주소는 ○○예요. — The address is ○○.
- 얼마나 걸려요? — How long will it take?
- 현금으로 낼게요. — I'll pay in cash.
마리 is the counter for whole animals, and chicken is ordered that way — 한 마리, 두 마리.
What Koreans actually order
| Korean | What it is |
|---|---|
| 치킨 | fried chicken |
| 족발 | braised pig's trotters |
| 보쌈 | boiled pork with wraps |
| 짜장면 | black bean noodles |
| 탕수육 | sweet and sour pork |
| 피자 | pizza |
| 떡볶이 | tteokbokki |
치킨 is the default. 후라이드 is plain fried, 양념 is sauced, and 반반 gets you half of each — which is what most people order.
When it arrives
- 얼마예요? — How much is it?
- 카드로 할게요. — By card.
- 감사합니다. — Thanks.
Tipping is not expected and will confuse the driver.
Containers go outside your door after eating. Many buildings have a designated spot, and some restaurants collect their own dishes if you ordered from a place that delivers on real plates.
Useful phrases about delivery
- 배달 시켜요! — Let's order delivery!
- 뭐 시켜요? — What should we order?
- 배달 얼마나 걸려요? — How long does delivery take?
- 가성비 좋아요. — Good value for money.
가성비 — cost-to-performance ratio — is used constantly in Korean, far more than any English equivalent. It applies to food, phones, apartments, anything.
See it happen
Episode 48 of K-PATTO is a delivery episode, and it is where 가성비 comes up naturally rather than as a vocabulary item. The conversation is casual 반말 between friends, which is the register you actually hear when ordering with people you know.
Read it at K-PATTO.