A Bowl of Jjajangmyeon for 55,000 Won... A Story That Moved Me Instead of Making Me Angry

Free Food for Food-Insecure Children at 'Seonhan Store'
Netizens Praise, "This Is How Money Should Be Spent"

A citizen is touching hearts by visiting a 'Good Store' that provides free meals to children at risk of food insecurity and paying 55,000 won?the price of one bowl of Jajangmyeon.

On the 27th, a post promoting a Chinese restaurant in Gunpo, Gyeonggi Province was uploaded on the online community 'Bobaedream.' The author, Mr. A, said, "Although the world has improved and there are fewer children starving these days, there are still children worried about having a single meal," adding, "The owner of a local Chinese restaurant is doing a very kind thing for those children."

On the 27th, a post promoting a Chinese restaurant in Gunpo, Gyeonggi Province was uploaded on the online community 'BobaeDream'. In the photo, five 10,000 won bills and one 5,000 won bill were neatly placed next to an empty bowl of Jjajangmyeon.
[Photo source=BobaeDream capture]

He then posted a photo of a signboard with the restaurant’s name and the phrase, "We do not charge for meals to children holding the Food-Insecure Children Dream Tree Card."

Although he had not yet visited the restaurant himself, he revealed, "Someone I know went there and paid 55,000 won?the price of one bowl of Jajangmyeon" and shared an additional photo. The photo showed five 10,000-won bills and one 5,000-won bill neatly placed next to an empty bowl of Jajangmyeon.

Mr. A added, "I’m thinking of stopping by soon. Both the Chinese restaurant owner and my acquaintance are wonderful people. Because of people like them, the world feels like a better place. The restaurant probably isn’t doing well, so I posted this out of gratitude for my kind acquaintance."

Netizens who saw this post responded with comments such as "Let’s give them a financial boost," "This is how money should be spent," "I should visit once too," "I’ve been to that Chinese restaurant and it’s delicious," and "How many people can do this in times like these?"

Meanwhile, the meal support program for food-insecure children is a welfare system targeting children under 18 years old, both in school and preschool, who are at risk of food insecurity.

As of 2021, there were 302,231 children in this category. These children belong to groups such as basic livelihood security recipients (173,008), near-poverty class (17,224), and single-parent families (111,999), who face difficulties in meal preparation by guardians or in feeding themselves.

Children having meals at a child welfare center.
[Photo by Asia Economy DB]

Although the government operates a meal support system to help low-income families’ children with their meals, there is a significant disparity in meal quality by region.

Due to price and convenience, food-insecure children mainly rely on convenience stores, and support amounts vary by district, ranging uniformly from 7,000 to 9,000 won regardless of age. The sharply rising cost of living also puts pressure on these children. To minimize regional disparities and ensure demand-centered meal support for children, voices are calling for regular status checks and surveys to be conducted.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.