The Donkatsu Story You Didn’t Know
A large white plate barely contains a big golden fried cutlet, covered with a glossy dark red sauce. On the side, white rice, a small bowl of cream soup, crunchy cubed radish kimchi, and spicy green chili peppers. This plate is more than just food. It’s a small time capsule capturing South Korea’s most dynamic era.
This dish takes us back to the streets of 1970s and 80s Seoul, the heart of dazzling economic growth. It invites us into the lives of the hidden heroes who kept the city’s lifeblood flowing—the taxi drivers. You might wonder, “How did this fried dish from the West become the ‘soul food’ comforting Seoul’s tired taxi drivers?” Let’s embark on this fascinating journey together.
Chapter 1: The City’s Arteries, The Birth of Taxi Driver Restaurants
1970s Seoul was like a giant furnace. People flooded in from all over the country, expanding the city, but public transportation couldn’t keep up. Amid this chaos, the taxi was the city’s capillary.
Taxi drivers’ days were sheer exhaustion. Driving 400–500 km daily was common, and shared rides were the norm. They desperately needed a place to park briefly, stretch their legs, and have a meal. The uniquely Korean restaurant culture called ‘taxi driver restaurants’ was born out of this urgent need.
The requirements to be a taxi driver restaurant were quite strict:
- Spacious parking was essential,
- Orders had to be served in the blink of an eye,
- And for the always solo drivers, ‘solo dining’ had to be possible.
Rules unimaginable at the time, like selling single servings of meat dishes, were standard here.
These places were more than eateries. In an era without mass media, taxi drivers were ‘walking radios’ delivering news from all over the city. Restaurants that passed their discerning tastes were recognized as ‘real eateries,’ and from the mid-1980s, word spread to the general public. The formula ‘taxi driver restaurant = great food’ was born.
Chapter 2: The Great Journey of the Cutlet
To understand taxi driver restaurant donkatsu, we must trace its roots back. The story begins in Europe with cutlet dishes like Austria’s ‘schnitzel’ or Italy’s ‘cotoletta’—thinly sliced meat coated in breadcrumbs and pan-fried in butter.
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This dish crossed to Japan in the late 19th century and was reborn as ‘tonkatsu (豚カツ)’.
- Frying method: Instead of butter, it was deep-fried in oil using the ‘tempura’ technique,
- Meat thickness: Thick pork cutlets were used to preserve juiciness,
- Serving style: Pre-cut for easy chopstick eating, served with rice and miso soup as a set meal.
This Japanese tonkatsu entered Korea in the 1970s–80s, gaining popularity in Western-style restaurants and evolving into the familiar ‘donkatsu’ we know today. Korean donkatsu developed its own charm.
The biggest difference lies in meat preparation. Unlike Japan’s emphasis on thickness, Korea pounded the meat thin and wide with a mallet. This shortened cooking time and made the plate look full and generous. The sauce also changed from the tangy Worcestershire-based Japanese style to a sweet and smooth demi-glace-style sauce made by sautéing flour and butter, poured generously over the fried cutlet (‘pour-over’ style).
Accompanied by a pre-meal cream soup and side dishes like kimchi and pickled radish to cut the richness, the beloved Korean donkatsu was complete.
Chapter 3: A Fateful Encounter, Why Donkatsu?
Originally, the signature dish at taxi driver restaurants was pork bulgogi. But over time, donkatsu challenged and eventually became the new symbol. There were very logical reasons.
First, donkatsu satisfied both ‘cost-effectiveness’ and ‘emotional satisfaction.’ Thanks to low ingredient costs, restaurants made profits, and customers enjoyed a hearty meat dish. The thin, wide cutlet filled the plate, giving a visual sense of being well served.
Second, it perfectly matched the taxi driver restaurants’ core value of ‘speed.’ Thin meat fried quickly in hot oil, so orders reached the table almost instantly.
But the decisive reason donkatsu became taxi drivers’ ‘soul food’ was the perfect partners: ‘cubed radish kimchi (kkakdugi)’ and ‘green chili peppers.’
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When the crispy fried cutlet and sweet sauce risked feeling greasy, a cool bite of kkakdugi refreshed the palate. If more was needed, biting into a fresh green chili dipped in ssamjang (fermented soybean paste) instantly cut through the oiliness with its sharp spiciness. This unique combination is exclusive to Korean taxi driver restaurant donkatsu.
Ultimately, taxi driver restaurant donkatsu was a ‘democratized luxury.’ Western-style dishes once reserved for special occasions became everyday comfort food for hardworking people, the perfect meal to soothe a tiring day.
Chapter 4: Pilgrimage to Donkatsu Holy Sites
The history of taxi driver restaurant donkatsu left living legends across Seoul. Among them, Seongbuk-dong and Namsan stand as the twin ‘donkatsu holy sites.’
A. Seongbuk-dong: The Battleground of Originals
Seongbuk-dong, where Seoul’s first taxi driver restaurant opened in the 1970s, is where the history began. Starting with ‘Geumwang Donkatsu’ in 1987, many restaurants emerged, turning it into a donkatsu mecca. Interestingly, each claims to be the original, but what mattered to customers was the large donkatsu, pre-meal soup, green chili, and kkakdugi—the ‘Seongbuk-dong style’ itself. Their rivalry went beyond business, resembling a prideful battle over ‘the taste of memories.’
B. Namsan: The Donkatsu Street Drama
Namsan became a donkatsu hotspot through tourists visiting the cable car and tower. Behind its glamorous fame lies a dramatic ‘original’ dispute. The long-standing original restaurant and the building owner holding the trademark clashed, revealing the commercial value of the ‘original’ title and the hidden struggles of small business owners, sparking significant social debate.
C. Gangnam and Other Areas: Living Traditions
As Seoul’s center shifted to Gangnam, the taxi driver restaurant culture found new homes. Places like ‘Gana Donkatsu House’ near Eonju Station and ‘Yunhwa Donkatsu’ near Hanti Station carry on the tradition, proving its resilience in the heart of Gangnam. This culture spread nationwide, becoming a universal nostalgic taste for all Koreans.
Conclusion: Warmth Beyond a Meal, ‘Jeong (情)’
We have followed the long journey contained in a single plate of donkatsu. If there is one word that runs through this story, it is ‘jeong (情),’ a uniquely Korean sense of warmth and connection.
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The owner’s casual generosity in adding extra side dishes, the sweet mixed coffee enjoyed after the meal—taxi driver restaurants are not just places to fill the stomach but warm communities that understand each other’s hardships and fill the hunger of the heart.
Amazingly, this taxi driver restaurant donkatsu has now crossed the Pacific and reached the heart of New York. Restaurants faithfully recreating the Korean taxi driver restaurant atmosphere, complete with kitschy wall fans and silver trays, have received explosive local responses. It’s a wonderful example of how the most Korean things can become the most global.
Times have changed, but the name ‘taxi driver restaurant’ still evokes taste, generosity, and warm memories. If you’ve had a tiring, hungry day, why not visit a nearby taxi driver restaurant? There, you will experience not just a plate of donkatsu but a very special flavor filled with Seoul’s history and the warmth of its people.