A Japanese Restaurant with a 'Jonmattaeng' Sign... Seokyeongdeok Says "We Must Reflect First"

Slang terms such as '존맛탱' and '개존맛', which mean "really delicious," are being openly used overseas, sparking controversy.

Professor Seokyung Deok from Sungshin Women's University stated on his Facebook on the 11th, "I received a report that a small signboard with '존맛탱 (JMT)' was hanging in the hallway of a Japanese restaurant mainly frequented by Korean group tourists," adding, "'존맛탱' is a slang term frequently used online to mean something is really delicious."

[Image source=Seokyungdeok, Professor at Sungshin Women's University, Facebook]

He continued, "Last year in Japan, '개존맛 Kimchi' was released, causing a major controversy on social media due to the product name," explaining, "At that time, opinions in Japan were divided between those who said 'slang should not be used as a product name' and those who said 'it's a common expression used by Koreans, so it's okay'." He also added, "In the past, a travel program featured a night market trip in Bangkok, Thailand, where a signboard saying '개존맛 Seafood Pancake' was caught on camera, causing both laughter and controversy."

Professor Seo said, "Slang is increasingly widely used by netizens," and "appropriately used slang can have a much greater expressive effect than so-called official language." However, he emphasized, "If we ourselves overuse it, such scenes will surely continue to appear overseas," and "we must first reflect on ourselves."

[Image source=Seokyungdeok, Professor at Sungshin Women's University, Facebook]

Previously, last year in Japan, '개존맛 Kimchi' was released and caused controversy. This product was jointly developed by the Japanese manufacturer Tenmasa, which sells pickled foods, and a Korean influencer. However, after its release, the word '개존맛' became problematic online as it is a Korean slang term.

As the controversy grew, the manufacturer issued a statement saying, "There were criticisms that the word '개존맛' used as the product name caused discomfort," and "We apologize for using slang in the product name and for the lack of awareness regarding its origin."

They further explained, "The product name '개존맛,' which has been pointed out online as inappropriate, is a term recently used among young Koreans," and "It was used to emphasize 'very delicious' in the product." The manufacturer added, "However, we reflect that it was an unsuitable expression," and "We take the controversy seriously and will carefully change the product name."