The first time I saw a Korean convenience store on TikTok, I could tell pretty quickly that the person was in a 7-Eleven. But I knew this 7-Eleven was different, not like the ones I knew in America. This one had bagged drinks.
It was @donidoni_kim on TikTok. She was getting Pokémon spicy tteokbokki (Korean rice cakes) and added cheese to the bowl. The 7-Eleven had a hot water spout and a microwave, and even though I’m not a huge cheese eater (sorry not sorry), the tteokbokki looked super tasty.
The next video I saw was @misojenkitchen making a cup of coffee with the iced hazelnut-flavored bag of coffee and a tiny little banana milk. It looked super cute and is now on my bucket list of things to try. Here are all the things I need to try if I ever go to a Korean convenience store.
Pouch Drinks
Besides the banana milk being on my list, the whole section of pouch drinks is something I really want to try. Apparently, the peach-ade is what everyone is talking about, and I have never searched so quickly for a drink in my area.
At GS25, another convenience store in Korea, @pwark.yiz made herself a cookies and cream iced Americano (I think) with little boxed Baskin-Robbins cookies and cream milk. Between the ASMR of popping the ice before opening the lids of the cups, to the tearing of the drink bags, I have never been so sensorially pleased.
While some TikTokers create a “things I ate” video, others do a silent lunch where they buy their food, cook it at the store, and eat it at the counter without saying a word to the camera. Those videos are the ones I appreciate watching at 2 a.m. when I can’t sleep and am incredibly hungry.
Kimbap & Musubi
While I had a craving for triangle kimbap after seeing a couple of these TikToks, I’m still searching for the stores that sell musubi because I’m too lazy to make it myself. I did go to the Korean grocery store near my college campus because I wanted tuna-filled onigiri, and it definitely hit the right spot before class.
I always love seeing the different types of kimbap that TikTokers try. Creator @judyllee had a bacon, tuna, and mayo kimbap. With tuna and bacon being two of my favorite things to eat (I’m a spicy tuna girl when it comes down to sushi), I immediately looked for kimbap similar to hers.
Ramen bowls
Some people go to the convenience stores to eat fire ramen bowls. While that sounds delicious, I don’t think I could ever eat that in public considering how fast my nose will start running.
User @Judyllee tried the green Buldak, one of their fire noodles, and made it look easy and delicious. That brand uses a black bean paste, which to me sounds super yummy. She mentioned it made her cry, confirming to me how terribly I would handle the heat level. On the other hand, what doesn’t kill you (or makes you sick) makes you stronger.
Soft-boiled eggs
The soft boiled eggs they sell in the convenience stores look so good, especially when mixed into ramen. TikToker @Hungryoc ate some at one of the convenience stores, and those soft-boiled eggs looked a lot better than the hard-boiled eggs I make myself for breakfast. They come two per pack in the shell, and the yolk is a perfect medium-cooked texture.
Even though I wish our 7-Elevens were similar to these, I’ll just have to deal with my blue raspberry slurpee and Pringles. The convenience in Korean convenience stores is no joke with the hot water canisters, microwaves, and specific garbage cans to drain water from the noodles. Now I need look up where I can find all of these items in my area.