Summer dining-out prices are rising across the board. Naengmyeon is in the mid- to high-10,000-won range, and samgyetang topped 18,000 won.
On the 31st, according to the Korea Consumer Agency (KCA)'s Chamgagyeok, the average price of naengmyeon in Seoul last month was 12,615 won, up 4.13% from the same period a year earlier. Seoul naengmyeon prices have continued to rise since first surpassing 10,000 won in April 2022.
A series of price hikes at major naengmyeon specialty restaurants in Seoul recently contributed to the increase. Uraeok, a Pyongyang-style naengmyeon restaurant in Jung-gu, Seoul, raised the price of naengmyeon in April from 16,000 won to 18,000 won, and Nampomyeonok raised it from 15,000 won to 16,000 won.
The rise in naengmyeon prices is seen as a result of higher costs for materials and supplies such as premium Korean beef, known as hanwoo brisket used in the broth. Most other specialty restaurants also price naengmyeon in the mid- to high-10,000-won range. Eulmildaesells it for 16,000 won, and Pildongmyeonok, Euljimyeonok, and Pyeongyang Myeonok sell it for 15,000 won.
Prices for samgyetang, a representative summer health food, are also on the rise. Last month, the average price of samgyetang in Seoul was 18,154 won, up 2.8% from a year earlier. Among 17 cities and provinces nationwide, Seoul was the only place where the average price exceeded 18,000 won.
At major samgyetang specialty restaurants in Seoul, the price per serving is around 20,000 won. Analysts say prices were pushed up as supply shrank after more than 300,000 parent stock for broilers (hens that lay chicks) were culled following an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (AI) last winter.
With global oil prices rising and exchange-rate pressures persisting, some expect the upward trend in dining-out prices to continue for the time being. The Bank of Korea raised its forecast for this year's consumer price inflation from 2.2% to 2.7%, up 0.5 percentage point (p).
Last month's consumer price index rose 2.6% from a year earlier, exceeding the 2% price stability target. Consumer price inflation expanded from 2.0% in January and February this year to 2.2% in March and 2.6% in April. In particular, petroleum product prices jumped 21.9%, marking the highest increase since July 2022.