World · East Asia & Pacific · 2 hrs ago
Christmas restaurant bookings in South Korea rise as diners seek special meals
South Koreans are booking Christmas meals earlier and in greater numbers as they seek special dining experiences.
Catch Table, a restaurant reservation platform, said the number of venues taking Christmas bookings by late October was 1.7 times the number at the same point in 2023.
Bookings received by Oct.
31 also exceeded the total for the same period a year earlier.
Last Christmas, customers spent 24.5% more per person than on ordinary Fridays and Saturdays in December, and bookings for courses costing at least 200,000 won nearly doubled from the year before.
Seasonal menus are a major draw: three in five Christmas bookings last year were for limited-time menus.
Demand for higher-priced sushi omakase also grew, with bookings at venues charging at least 150,000 won up 18% in January-August compared with the same months a year earlier.
Catch Table has released a list of 100 popular Christmas restaurants, whose bookings open in stages from Nov.
13 to 22.
Christmas restaurant reservations in South Korea are rising as diners seek special meals and seasonal menus.
By late October, the number of venues accepting Christmas bookings was 1.7 times the figure at the same point in 2023.
Bookings received by October 31 were higher than at the same point the previous year, according to reservation platform Catchtable.
Last year, the average amount spent per diner on Christmas was 24.5% higher than on ordinary Fridays and Saturdays in December.
Catchtable said demand for distinctive dining experiences is driving a rush to secure places at premium restaurants.
- Who
- Diners in South Korea are booking restaurants for Christmas.
- What
- Christmas reservations have risen, with diners seeking special meals and seasonal menus.
- When
- The report was published on November 6, 2026; bookings for this Christmas were already under way.
- Where
- South Korea.
- Why
- Diners are seeking special dining experiences for the holiday, including seasonal menus and premium meals.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The number of venues accepting Christmas reservations was 1.7 times the number at the same point in 2023.
Christmas bookings received by this date were higher than at the same point the previous year.
Catchtable published its Christmas reservation trends report and announced its Christmas restaurants Top 100.
Reservations at the listed restaurants are scheduled to open in stages.
- Venues accepting Christmas bookings
- 1.7 times the number at the same point in 2023
- Christmas bookings by October 31
- Higher than at the same point the previous year
- Average Christmas spend per diner
- 24.5% higher than on ordinary Fridays and Saturdays in December
- Bookings for courses costing at least 200,000 won
- About twice the previous year’s number
- Seasonal-menu reservations last Christmas
- Three out of five
- Vacancy alert” requests
- 84% more than in 2023 last year
1 source
What people are saying
Demand to mark Christmas with a special dining experience continues to grow, and a race to secure places is starting, especially at premium restaurants.