2018년 1월 12일 금요일

Halal food in Korea: more Muslim-friendly restaurants are popping up in Seoul


Malaysian tourist who visited Makan, a Halal restaurant in Itaewon, Seoul said. "I watched a Korean drama in Malaysia and wondered about the original Korean food, but Samgyetang and bulgogi are delicious here as well."

The entire restaurant was crowded with Muslim tourists. "We came to Seoul for a vacation," said six female college students wearing a hijab. "Our hotel is located near Seoul Station but we came here because it is in Itaewon where we can eat halal foods."
In addition to the 'Makan', there are also many Halal Korean restaurants such as 'Eid' at Usadan road in Itaewon which is connected to the Seoul Central Mosque.
At Usadan road, Turkey and Arabic restaurants such as 'Kervan' and 'City Sarah' serve Korean dishes such as bibimbap and jajangmyun in halal style.

In order to be certified as a Halal certified restaurant, the Korean Federation of Muslims and the Korean Halal Certification Authority must undergo the inspection and approval.
The first Korean Halal restaurant, 'Eid' opened in October 2014.

Yoo Hong-jong, owner of the Eid restaurant said, "My son was studying Arabic and brought his muslim friends home.
No matter how delicious it looks they did not eat any meat, I knew Muslims do not eat pork or alcohol but I was surprised to learn that muslims don't eat any meat which is not slaughtered according to islam law" Yoo said that this cultural shock was the reason for opening up Halal Korean Restaurant in Seoul.

The food problem is a "stumbling block" that Muslim tourists from the countries such as Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)and India.
According to the satisfaction Survey conducted by Korea Tourism Organization on 700 Muslim tourists who visited Korea in 2016, satisfactory rate for accommodation facilities(67.0%),shopping places(69.0%),transportation facilities(72.0%) and airport(69.1%) were high while food(46.3%) and religious activities (16.3%) were relatively low.
"I think Koreans think that Korean food is a healthy diet, but the Muslims do not have halal food, so inevitably they only eat vegetarians and fish in the general restaurant," said Alpagho sina(29), Turkish expat living in Korea for 13years . "It is not easy for Muslims to visit Korea unless halal ingredients are used in more restaurants," said Hana Bassam Safi, a business producer at Gulf News in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

In order to alleviate these inconveniences, the Korea Tourism Organization introduced a "Muslim-friendly restaurant classification system" in 2016, allowing domestic residents and tourists to easily find related restaurants.





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