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All Your Favorite Gukbap Restaurants in One Place! Busan Metropolitan City to Host Gukbap Showcase at the 2026 Busan Dwaeji Gukbap Grand Fair

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Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Chun Jae-soo) announced that it will host the Gukbap Showcase as part of the 2026 Busan Dwaeji Gukbap Grand Fair, in collaboration with the Busan Tourism Organization, for three days from October 16 to 18 at Now Our Living in Busan International Finance Center 2 (BIFC2).

The 2026 Busan Dwaeji Gukbap Grand Fair is an interactive culinary tourism initiative featuring dwaeji gukbap, one of Busan's signature culinary attractions.

The Gukbap Showcase is the culminating in-person event of the 2026 Busan Dwaeji Gukbap Grand Fair, which began in August with Gukbap Recommendations, inviting citizens to nominate their favorite gukbap restaurants, followed by the Gukbap Summit and Gukbap Week. The showcase will run daily from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. from October 16 to 18.

Under the theme "The People Behind Busan's Signature Bowl," the Gukbap Showcase will feature a variety of programs, including the Gukbap Salon, Gukbap Awards, Dwaeji Gukbap Culinary Experience of the Year, and Gukbap Market.

(Gukbap Salon) At 5:30 p.m. on October 16, a Gukbap Salon talk concert will feature chef Kang Leo and food columnist Park Sang-hyun. The discussion will explore the stories of Busan told through a bowl of gukbap, covering diverse preferences, personal ways of creating the perfect bowl, and Busan's dwaeji gukbap scene through the lens of long-established restaurants and emerging favorites.

(Gukbap Awards) At 7 p.m. on October 16, the Gukbap Awards will recognize the year's Top 20, Top 10, and Top 3 dwaeji gukbap restaurants, selected directly by citizens and tourists based on the results of Gukbap Week voting. Detailed rankings will not be disclosed.

(Dwaeji Gukbap Culinary Experience of the Year) Eleven of the 20 citizen-recommended gukbap restaurants will serve freshly prepared dwaeji gukbap on-site. Visitors can experience Busan's signature dish by reserving a Tasting Platter in advance, available on a first-come, first-served basis, to sample three different flavors at once, or by purchasing a Half Gukbap on-site to savor a single variety.

(Gukbap Market) This pop-up store dedicated to dwaeji gukbap will offer visitors the opportunity to purchase official merchandise from the Busan Dwaeji Gukbap Grand Fair, including T-shirts and keychains.

Meanwhile, Gukbap Week's nationwide public vote to select the final Top 3 gukbap restaurants continues to attract enthusiastic interest from citizens and tourists, surpassing 21,000 votes just nine days after voting began.

Launched on September 28, Gukbap Week is a nationwide public vote featuring 20 citizen-recommended gukbap restaurants selected from nominations submitted by approximately 10,800 citizens. The final Top 3 and Top 10 restaurants will be determined based on the voting results, with voting continuing through October 14.

Participants can vote by selecting the "Busan Dwaeji Gukbap Grand Fair" button at the top of KakaoMap or by visiting any of the 20 citizen-recommended restaurants and scanning the QR code on promotional materials displayed at the premises. Various promotional activities, including Gukbap Lottery events, will also be available to those who vote on-site.

In addition, videos featuring the Gukbap Summit held on September 19 have been released in stages.

The Gukbap Summit was a discussion session lasting approximately nine hours, featuring 20 citizen gukbap enthusiasts, chef Kang Leo, food columnist Park Sang-hyun, and other participants.

Beginning with the main teaser released on September 27, preview videos introducing citizen gukbap enthusiasts with their distinct personalities and full-length videos highlighting key discussions from the summit have been released sequentially through the Visit Busan YouTube channel and other platforms.

Further details about the event, including advance reservations and the lineup of participating restaurants, are available on the Visit Busan website (www.visitbusan.net) and Instagram (@visitbusan.kr).

Na Yun-bin, Director General of the Tourism Content Industry Bureau of Busan Metropolitan City, said, "This showcase offers an opportunity to experience, all in one place, the diverse flavors and stories of dwaeji gukbap that Busan residents have cherished over the years."

Na added, "We hope that a bowl of gukbap enjoyed at the showcase will inspire visitors to explore the restaurants and neighborhoods where it originates, creating new opportunities for culinary tourism and encouraging them to discover different corners of Busan."