Jinhae cherry blossom festival overcharges customers for food

Local media catches food stands overcharging visitors during the Jinhae Gunhang Festival. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

Jinhae Gunhang Festival, one of the largest cherry blossom celebrations in Korea, sparked controversy by overcharging customers for food, according to a local media report.

Local TV broadcaster MBC reported Thursday that two fish cake skewers cost 10,000 won ($ 7.42), far higher than its usual cost of 500 to 1,000 won per stick.

The actual serving was also different from what was stated on the menu, which said six fish cake skewers per serving.

When asked about the serving sizes, the food booth owner confirmed the significant discrepancy and said that it was intentional.

“We don’t use the typical fish cakes for our skewers, we serve a much more expensive type of fish cake,” the owner said.

Originally the festival organizer and food stall owner agreed to a price of 10,000 won for six fish cake skewers, according to the locals news report.

This did not happen during the actual festival.

But this was not the only incident of overcharging. Several other businesses also sold their prices above the threshold that the Changwon City Hall set. Additionally, some businesses conducted sales without the festival organizer's permission.

According to the local news report, administrative institutions did not properly crackdown on the offending food stalls during their general checkup.

Civil officials ran an on-site inspection of checking the menu and asking food stall owners if customers were content with the prices. However, they did not check if the amount of food was served according to what was on the menu.

“We will take measures like reinforcing guidance against overcharging and permanently kicking out stands that break the rules," Changwon City Hall said.

Jinhae Gunhang Festival, held annually in South Gyeongsang, is one of the most renowned cherry blossom festivals in Korea.

This year, the festival began on March 23 and will continue until April 1.

BY JUNG SI-NAE, KIM JI-YE [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]