Foie Gras and Salmon Belly... Newly Opened Pyongyang Barbecue Restaurant Becomes an Instant Hit

New Restaurant Opens in Pyongyang's Hwaseong District Phase 3
High-End Cuisine Targets Foreign Tourists

A newly opened restaurant in Hwaseong District, known as the "new town" area of Pyongyang, is gaining popularity, particularly among the affluent.

Foie Gras and Salmon Belly... Newly Opened Pyongyang Barbecue Restaurant Becomes an Instant Hit

North Korea's external propaganda outlet Naenara reported on the 16th that Hwaseong Rakwon Bulgogi Restaurant, a new popular eatery in Hwaseong District, considered the new town of Pyongyang, is gaining popularity. Naenara, Yonhap News Agency

North Korea's foreign propaganda outlet Naenara reported on the 16th that Hwaseong Rakwon Bulgogi Restaurant, a new popular eatery in Hwaseong District, considered the new town of Pyongyang, is gaining popularity. Naenara, Yonhap News Agency

On July 16, Yonhap News Agency, citing North Korea's external propaganda outlet Naenara, reported that "the newly established Hwaseong Rakwon Bulgogi Restaurant in Hwaseong District is attracting a steady stream of visitors." The restaurant, which occupies a two-story building, is located at the center of the third phase of the new urban development in Pyongyang's Hwaseong District, completed in April.

The total floor area is over 4,000 square meters (approximately 1,200 pyeong), and the restaurant is equipped with barbecue dining rooms, bulgogi dining rooms, and family dining rooms. There is also an outdoor terrace where guests can dine. In the photos released by the outlet, young staff members in neat uniforms are seen welcoming customers.

The outlet introduced the restaurant as serving "a variety of barbecues, including pork shoulder barbecue and beef tongue barbecue, as well as more than 40 types of bulgogi such as pork belly (samgyeopsal) bulgogi, and over 200 different dishes including salmon belly sashimi (reoeobaesalhoe) and goose liver (gesanigan) hamburgers."

It added, "The exterior is designed to resemble a barbecue grill, making it clear from a distance that it is a bulgogi restaurant," and noted, "Although it has not been long since its opening, many people are already visiting the restaurant."

The main customers of this restaurant are affluent Pyongyang residents with purchasing power and wealthy individuals who have accumulated money through the jangmadang (marketplaces). The restaurant also promotes high-end dishes that are rare in North Korea, such as foie gras and salmon belly, through external propaganda outlets, which appears to be a marketing strategy targeting foreign tourists as well.

Tourism is not included in the sanctions against North Korea, so it is regarded as a key means of earning foreign currency. In fact, there continues to be steady demand from overseas tourists visiting North Korea. On July 14 (local time), the Russian daily Kommersant published an account by its reporter who visited the Wonsan-Kalma Coastal Tourist Zone resort in Kangwon Province. The article reported that the hotel restaurant at the resort offered a full-course meal that included chicken with ginseng, crab, eggplant, duck, beef, and fish.

At the 8th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea on January 2021, North Korea announced a plan to build 10,000 housing units annually in Pyongyang for five years, totaling 50,000 units. Subsequently, in 2023 and 2024, the first and second phases of 10,000-unit housing complexes in Hwaseong District were completed, followed by the completion of the third phase of 10,000-unit residential buildings in April.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is known to have a particular interest in the housing construction project. According to the Korean Central News Agency, at the completion ceremony for the third phase of 10,000-unit residences in Hwaseong District, Kim stated, "I am sorry that we are only now able to provide such modern homes, and seeing the citizens overflowing with joy and excitement today, I am even more determined to take on more work for the people."