Solo dining means 'freedom' for young Koreans — but it could also be making them unhappy

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Solo dining means 'freedom' for young Koreans — but it could also be making them unhappy

Published: 29 Apr. 2025, 07:00

LEE JIAN
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

A man eats noodles by himself at a restaurant near his home in Seodaemun District, western Seoul. [NEWS1]

Twenty-five-year-old college student Park Seung-woo doesn’t consider herself particularly lonely or without friends. Yet, on most days, she finds herself eating alone.

Sometimes, it is circumstantial. With her busy class schedule, it is more convenient for her to grab a quick bite alone. However, at other times, it is a deliberate choice she makes because she enjoys having a meal with only her own company.

“I feel happy when I get to eat something I’ve been craving or when I visit a good restaurant. By exploring restaurants on my own, I can enjoy whatever I want and at my own pace,” she said. “Eating is a very important part of my life, so when I can’t have what I want, I tend to feel a bit down. In that sense, solo dining significantly impacts my happiness.”

Her experience contrasts with the findings of the "2025 World Happiness Report," released last month, which highlighted the rise in solo dining and its connection to declining happiness levels. It concluded that sharing meals “serves as a powerful indicator of subjective well-being — comparable to income and unemployment” across regions, countries and cultures, for both men and women, young and old.

The same report went on to highlight Korea, due to its lack of meal sharing and the positive correlation, for its low happiness level. The country ranked 58th — six places lower than in 2024 — out of 147 countries studied for the report.

Koreans eat with others approximately four times a week, according to a 2022 Gallup World Poll. When broken down by meals, they share an average of only two dinners and four lunches with people each week.

People eat alone at a food court in Seoul [NEWS1]

While many studies focus on the potentially harmful aspects of eating alone, a significant number of young Koreans, like Park, view the act — also known as honbap — as an empowering, and even slightly subversive, move against the country’s collectivist tendencies where meal sharing is among the many norms strictly imposed upon those in society.

With the rise of mass media romanticizing solo dining, honbap today carries little stigma in Korea. It is even viewed as a trend and part of popular culture. Whether it is valid to prefer solo dining, however, remains a point of contention among experts.

How good are you at honbap?

Korean reality show ″I Live Alone″ features K-pop star Hwasa eating gopchang (grilled intestines) by herself, in an episode aired in 2018. [SCREEN CAPTURE/MBC]

Koreans are increasingly dining alone, not out of loneliness, but for the peace of mind it brings.

Called "honbap," solo dining gained popularity among Koreans in their 20s and 30s, highlighting the empowering nuance of eating alone. It conveys the idea of confidently visiting a restaurant or bar by oneself, relishing food or drinks without worrying about how one is perceived.

Its rise coincides with the increase in single-person households. In 2023, they accounted for 7.83 million, or 35.5 percent of all households in Korea, according to Statistics Korea last year.

Kim Su-min, a 28-year-old salary worker living alone in Seodaemun District, western Seoul, has dinner alone at least five times a week. She doesn't mind it too much, though, and accepts the reality of her situation. “It would just be very inconvenient otherwise,” Kim said.

A 2023 survey conducted by Professor Lee Shim-yeol and his research team from the Department of Home Economics Education at Dongguk University found that one in two Koreans aged 20 to 30 eat at least one meal alone each day.

Nowadays, what was born out of necessity and convenience is increasingly idealized by mass media as a cool trend.

The reality show “I Live Alone” (2013-) films the daily lives of celebrities who live by themselves, and in 2018, a scene featuring girl group Mamamoo member Hwasa grilling gopchang (grilled cow intestines) by herself at a restaurant went especially viral because of how deliciously she devoured her food, focusing on enjoying her favorite meal and being unconcerned with her surroundings.

“I love that she just spent a quiet morning to herself, put on some makeup and clothes, and then went out alone to enjoy this relaxed meal in broad daylight,” reads a comment under the scene clipped on YouTube.

A scene from the Japanese TV show ″Solitary Gourmet″ (2012-23) highly popular in Korea [SCREEN CAPTURE]

“The Solitary Gourmet” (2012-23), a Japanese manga and TV show about a man who explores different restaurants in his city after work, has seen explosive popularity in Korea, even more than among Japanese viewers, according to the show’s star Yutaka Matsushige — who was in Korea last month to promote the new film version of the TV show.

Korean solo travel-slash-dining vlogs and reels are a common find on social media, and there are even memes dividing different kinds of restaurants into levels for honbap. At level one — the easiest places to eat alone — are fast food restaurants.

At the highest level are buffets and sit-down restaurants like Outback Steakhouse and Korean barbecue joints. If honbap enthusiasts manage to eat alone at these establishments, it is considered boastworthy.

“Honbap doesn’t apply to people who eat alone because they are truly lonely or depressed," psychiatrist Chung Chan-seung, the director of the Social Responsibility Committee of the Korean Neuropsychiatric Association, said. "But for a growing group of young, busy Koreans living alone, it not only validates it but also makes it a trendy, cool thing to do.”

“I like eating alone.”

Most people, in fact, relish their time alone while eating.

A survey by the Korean Society of Consumer Policy and Education found that the majority of its respondents actively enjoyed solo dining. Of its 377 participants aged 20 to 59 living in Seoul, 32 percent, or 121 individuals, answered that they voluntarily chose to eat alone because of gastronomic pleasure, a sense of freedom and economic convenience.

Only 19 percent were found to be involuntary and unmotivated solo diners.

Interestingly, traditional sociopsychological factors, such as awareness of others’ opinions and the country’s collectivist culture, did not display a statistically significant correlation to people’s satisfaction with solo dining. Even the group that felt forced to eat alone was not particularly concerned about these traits.

Honbap enthusiast Park likewise said that she has dined alone in sit-down restaurants and buffets, without feeling too bothered.

“I try not to care, and the restaurant staff members usually don’t make me feel bad about it, so I’m not overly concerned about what others think of me when I eat alone,” she said.

Restaurateurs, such as Korean barbecue establishment owner Kim Sung-yoon in Yongin, Gyeonggi, stated that he welcomes solo customers, although the portion sizes for all main menu items are designed for two or more people.

“We welcome any party size as long as they are willing to pay for the extra portion,” he said.

What mattered, instead, was whether eating alone was a voluntary choice — people who chose to dine alone felt better about it. Additionally, those who experienced a sense of freedom while eating alone, viewing it as “me time” or a restful experience, tended to enjoy solo dining more.

But Korea hasn’t always been this way. In a country with a strong collectivist identity, dining has traditionally been a communal activity. Even the word “family” in Korean, sikgu, literally means people who eat together. The term can apply not only to direct families but also more broadly to friends and close colleagues.

Culture critic Kim Heon-sik views honbap as a form of rebellion by the younger generation against their elders and Korea’s traditional values.

“People who ate alone were often viewed negatively, as if they were outliers in society who couldn’t connect with others and had issues related to their personality. In that sense, the honbap trend is perceived as a reflection of freedom being pushed forward by the new generation.”

Will eating alone make me unhappy?

A girl has doubts as she is dining alone. [GETTY IMAGE BANK]

Like the World Happiness Report, most studies on solo dining often focus on the negative aspects of solo dining, citing its harmful effects on people’s psychology and social well-being.

Professor Suh Eun-kook of Yonsei University’s Department of Psychology stated that a society where individuals consistently choose solitude over community is “bound to pay a heavy price.”

He views honbap as a result of a busy and intensely competitive society, stating that “there is a tendency among Koreans to, even unconsciously, perceive one another as competitors instead of allies.” High honbap rates in Korea are a by-product of this social attitude, he argued.

“This matter requires considerable discussion, particularly in today's context. Isolation is a self-destructive act that obstructs one's own happiness.”

Psychiatrist Chung stated that honbap could be a wholesome and mentally healthy option in today's world.

“Meals provide a valuable opportunity to alleviate loneliness and foster a sense of community and solidarity. However, with the acceleration of urbanization, society has transitioned from a collective culture to one that is more individual-focused. In this shift, people are beginning to uncover and appreciate some positive aspects of dining alone,” he said.

“Claiming that someone who eats alone is less happy or more unhappy than someone who eats with others isn’t completely accurate. Although people still find comfort and connection through shared meals, the positive aspects of eating alone — such as independence and solace — represent a new and valid form of pleasure that modern society has come to value.”

BY LEE JIAN [[email protected]]