Yeonhui-dong in Seodaemun-gu is home to a distinctive culture shaped over decades by Chinese residents who have built their lives alongside the broader community — a presence woven naturally into the neighborhood's schools, restaurants and everyday street life.
That shared history found a new expression Wednesday, when residents gathered in Seodaemun to exchange cultures over food.
Seodaemun-gu said the Hansung Chinese Association hosted the "2026 Taiwan Culinary Promotion International Tour" at the Seodaemun Happiness Center on Wednesday, bringing together the local Chinese community and neighborhood residents through food culture.
The district is already deeply connected to Chinese culinary heritage: the Korea Hansung Chinese Middle and High School is located in Yeonhui-dong, and the surrounding area has long been home to Chinese restaurants rooted in that tradition, forming a distinctive local character over many years.
The event built on those ties, creating space for Chinese residents — as members of the broader community — to deepen mutual understanding and expand everyday points of connection.
Seodaemun-gu District Mayor Park Woon-ki attended alongside Lee Jung-han, chairman of the Korea Chinese Association General Federation; Gu Gao-wei, representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Korea; and Dam So-young, chairperson of the Hansung Chinese Middle School board, as well as other members of the Chinese community.
About 60 people took part in all, including prominent Korean Chinese-cuisine chefs Yeo Gyeong-rae, Pil Gam-san and Dam So-ryong, as well as chefs from Taiwan invited by the organizers.
In the kitchen that day, food served as a bridge between cultures. Taiwanese chefs Gang Shin-eui and Yeo Wi-sung, joined by Korean chef Dam So-ryong, prepared beef noodle soup, fried shrimp with vegetables, shrimp pancakes and cucumber salad, sharing the culinary traditions and techniques behind each dish.
Particularly popular was a demonstration of Taiwanese-style cucumber salad — simple enough to recreate at home. Participants tasted the finished dishes together and fell into easy conversation.
"Making and tasting food together made our different cultures feel so much closer," one participant said. "It was a meaningful time to get to know the neighbors we share this community with."
The Taiwan Culinary Promotion International Tour, organized by the Hansung Chinese Association, is a traveling event held across multiple cities to introduce Taiwanese food culture and foster exchange with local Chinese culinary traditions.
For Seodaemun-gu, the significance of the event goes beyond a simple food showcase — it lies in helping longtime neighbors understand each other's cultures and daily lives.
"The Chinese community are not guests passing through Seodaemun — they are neighbors who have lived here for a long time and helped shape this district," district mayor Park said. "Respecting the cultures that have accumulated in our schools, our food and our alleyways, and living together with that respect, is what I believe makes Seodaemun the kind of community it is."
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