South Korea’s drying booze culture leaves bars parched: ‘I just order cola’

Empty tables are seen behind alcohol promotional displays at a bar near Seoul National University in South Korea.

Photo: Korea Times “I hardly drink at all – one or two glasses of beer at most.” Kim Min-ha, a 21-year-old student at Sookmyung Women’s University, recently headed to a cafe with fellow club members after a meet-up.

They each ordered one of the newly released drinks and chatted for a while before parting ways.

On the rare occasions that they do go out for beer, only a few actually order alcohol.

Kim said the gatherings usually start at 6pm and end around 8 or 9pm.

Kim’s experience reflects the growing spread of moderate drinking and abstinence culture among young South Koreans.

Gatherings that do not involve alcohol – usually centred on dinner, cafes or karaoke rather than bars – are becoming more common, and the shift is also changing the face of evening streets in university districts.

An increasing number of college students say they no longer see much point in drinking.

Lee Ye-chan, 25, said alcohol tastes unpleasant to him and only leaves him feeling bloated. “So I just order a zero-sugar cola, even at a bar,” he said.

Park Ye-ka, 21, said she also avoids alcohol because it affects her condition the next day.

She added that relationships formed around drinking often do not feel lasting. “And honestly, the cost is burdensome too,” she said.

Bars on streets near college campuses are also feeling the effects of the cultural shift.

The start of a new semester once meant packed nights of student parties and club gatherings, but this year the streets seem to have lost much of that atmosphere.

A liquor refrigerator glows inside an otherwise empty bar near Hanyang University in Seongdong district, Seoul.

Photo: Korea Times At a lamb skewer restaurant near Seoul National University Station on the evening of March 17, only five of its 18 tables were occupied.

Even then, just one was taken by college students. “In the past, every table would be lined with five or six bottles of soju and beer,” said Oh, the owner, who is in his 70s. “Now students either do not drink at all, or they order just one or two bottles and leave.” The same pattern was visible around Hanyang University, where foot traffic is relatively heavy.

Choi, 45, who has run a gastropub near the campus for 16 years, showed her sales records and said her average monthly revenue had dropped by 12 million won (US$8,000) compared with a year earlier. “Only one in five tables

原文链接: 南华早报