Since its Netflix debut in June 2025, the animated film K-Pop Demon Hunters has become the platform’s most-watched movie to date, drawing more than 236 million views in its first two months. Nominative determinism is the name of the game with this one as Rumi, Mira and Zoey, the   members of K-Pop trio Huntr/x, navigate their dual identities as both international music superstars and heirs to an ancient line of demon slayers. It’s a love letter to contemporary South Korean pop culture, and its huge success is testament to the degree to which this has gone mainstream internationally. From the viral explosion of Gangnam Style in 2012 to the cinematic triumph of Parasite and the global domination of BTS, Korean culture has evolved from curiosity to cultural mainstay.

Food, both ancient and modern, is front and centre in K-Pop Demon Hunters. Across scenes, the Huntr/x girls move seamlessly from slurping down personalised cup ramyun (instant noodles), to devouring kimbap (seasoned, filled rice rolls wrapped in seaweed), and traditional Naengmyeon (a cold buckwheat noodle dish served in an iced broth).

Iconic snack foods such as South Korean-style corn dogs feature at pivotal moments within the movie, and are likely to be familiar to international audiences, with chains such as Bunsik bringing casual Korean street food to the UK market and beyond. In light of K-Pop Demon Hunters’ runaway success, it’s worth taking a closer look at the rise of K-Food in the West, and what brands can learn from this cultural wave.

From screens to streets: how K-Culture gained familiarity in the West

South Korean cultural exports are now firmly embedded in the consciousnesses of international audiences. The first season of dystopian survival thriller Squid Game was released to huge success in 2021, and it brought some niche areas of Korean food culture back to public attention, both at home and abroad. A central plot point of the series featured cash-strapped contestants charged with a simple challenge – using a needle, to extract the shape stamped into a piece of dalgona candy (a retro kids’ favourite, made from a mixture of sugar and baking soda). The catch? If they break the shape, they are eliminated – literally, according to the rules of Squid Game. Dalgona became something of a cultural phenomenon, in Korea and beyond – an October 2021 Reuters’ interview with the dalgona maker who supplied the series stated that his sales had more than doubled overnight in the wake of Squid Game’s success. Awareness of dalgona grew internationally, too, with an abundance of dalgona kits available on platforms such as Amazon in the US and UK.

It’s not just high-production-values dramas driving awareness, though. The phenomenon of mukbang content, in which creators share videos of themselves consuming large quantities of food in a single sitting, has also brought several Korean brands to the international stage. Take the case of Samyang’s Buldak instant ramyun – so spicy they became known colloquially as ‘fire noodles’. The challenge of eating multiple bowls on camera quickly turned into an internet sensation, with content creators eagerly sharing their spicy ordeals worldwide. As a result of this cultural traction, Buldak is now sold in over 100 countries, with the overseas business accounting for 77% of the company’s total sales in 2024.

Familiar formats, fancy flavours: Korean street food and ongoing cultural exchange

Korean-influenced fast food is also rapidly on the rise. According to research by delivery brand Just Eat, the ‘K-Wave’ is worth £3.5 billion to the UK economy, with food and related products making up about 58% of the total. At the forefront of this trend are foods that feel rooted in Western culinary convention – fried chicken, corn dogs – but which have been reimagined for Korean preferences, then re-exported back to their countries of origin. In the wake of the Korean War in the 1950s, the United States and South Korea experienced an intense cultural dialogue, influencing everything from cuisine to popular culture. Traditional Korean dishes also experienced makeovers, in some cases – budae-jjigae, or army base stew, is a riff on traditional Korean stews, named after the leftover United States Army rations that form its foundations. In the dish, traditional kimchi and noodles are paired with sausages, baked beans, and processed cheese slices – a resourceful fusion that remains popular in Korea today.

Back in Europe and the US, however, it’s the subtly switched-up versions of more familiar fast food that are really taking off. Korean-style corn dogs – which also feature in a central number in K-Pop Demon Hunters – have been hugely successful internationally. Bunsik is a chain founded in London in 2021; named after the Korean-language term for ‘flour-based snack foods’, the company is expanding across the UK, with seven locations across the country as of late 2025, and plans for more stores to come.

Founded in Busan, fried chicken brand Bonchon has found great success in the US, with over 130 stores nationwide. The brand represents a perfect alignment of Korean flavour innovation with American casual dining preferences. Its double‑fried chicken, coated in signature soy garlic or spicy sauces, delivers a texture and taste that feels familiar to the American palate, yet distinctly Korean. The brand’s focus on consistent quality, visually striking presentation, and social‑media-friendly menu items – such as bulgogi fries and Korean street‑food‑inspired sides – has helped it capture both mainstream audiences and foodie communities alike.

From ‘Asian’ to authentic: K-Food carves its own identity

As Western consumers become more familiar with Korean-style fast food, their curiosity is moving beyond fried chicken and corn dogs into the pantry, where authentic ingredients tell their own story. 

Beyond key cities in the US and Europe, Korean, Chinese, and Japanese cuisines have often been treated as a single ‘Asian’ category, erasing their distinctiveness. This is changing in the present, with Korean food culture and ingredients increasingly understood as nuanced and distinct. Take gochujang, the fiery fermented red chilli paste now stocked at HMart, Whole Foods, and Sainsbury’s; doenjang, the earthy fermented soybean paste that forms the backbone of many soups and stews; and aromatic oils such as sesame and perilla – these are becoming staples in home kitchens that seek to achieve authentic Korean flavours.

Even kimchi specialists such as Jongga have crossed from niche import shelves into everyday grocery aisles, signalling mainstream adoption. Brands like Bibigo have harnessed this curiosity, translating traditional Korean sauces, condiments and dumplings into accessible, ready-to-use formats that let curious home cooks experiment with authentic flavours respectfully. The result is a new generation of diners and cooks who can taste the difference, and who expect authenticity.

In conclusion: what brands can learn from the K-Food wave

K-Food’s rise on the international stage illustrates how far Korean cuisine has travelled – from niche curiosity to mainstream cultural force. It’s a journey driven by media, social content, and savvy brands, moving from high-profile pop culture moments like K-Pop Demon Hunters and Squid Game, to hybrid fast-food offerings in the US and Europe, and finally into home kitchens through accessible ingredients and condiments. Consumers are no longer satisfied with generic ‘Asian’ labels; they are actively seeking out flavours, textures, and culinary experiences that feel distinctively and authentically Korean.

For brands seeking to bring international cuisines to new audiences, here are three key learnings:

  • Leverage cultural storytelling: Embedding products in engaging narratives can spark international curiosity and social media virality, as seen with Buldak noodles or K-Pop tie-ins.
  • Hybridisation works: Reimagining familiar formats like fried chicken or corn dogs with Korean flavours creates approachable entry points for new audiences, as exemplified by chains such as Bunsik and Bonchon.
  • Make authentic ingredients accessible: From gochujang and doenjang to Bibigo’s ready-to-use sauces and dumplings, widened access allows home cooks to experiment, deepening engagement and building lasting brand loyalty.

Emily Porter-Salmon, Director

K-Food Scene Stealers: The Rise of Korean Food Culture on the International Stage