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Food & Drink - Korean Drinking Manners
Seating at the drinking table | Do not decline the first glass of alcohol
Drinking Manners | Offering alcohol

  Seating at the drinking table
The most respected spot at a Korean drinking table is usually the place on an ondol floor nearest to the fireplace or the place where you can sit against a wall and view the entrance door. If you are drinking with a person older than you, have them sit at this spot.

  Do not decline the first glass of alcohol
Even if person does not love to drink, it is courteous manner to drink at least the first glass when you attend a drinking round so as not to ruin the drinking mood.

  Drinking Manners
In Korea, the proper amount of alcohol to drink is described as "il bul, sam so, o ui, chil gwa", meaning "don't stop with one glass, 3 glasses lacks, 5 glasses is proper, and 7 glasses is over drinking."

In traditional Korea, when an elderly person is offering alcohol, the received should stand up and proceed and take the glass with both hands after bowing. When the elderly person has stopped pouring, the receiver can drink after re-taking his/her seat. Do not drink before the elder person raises the glass and do not decline the glass that the elder person is offering.

In modern days, most people just get up to kneel and take the glass courteously with both hands.

  Offering alcohol
At the drinking table, offer alcohol to elderly first. The person pouring the alcohol should pour with both hands in courteous manner. Hold the alcohol bottle with the right hand, place the left hand lightly under the right arm and be careful to keep the sleeve and lower end of clothes out of the food and drink.

In the olden days, traditional Korean drinking customs dictated that after receiving the first glass and drink, the person was supposed to kneel and offer back to elderly the glass of alcohol again in the empty glass from which he just drank. But these days, for sanitary purposes, this custom has declined because of the fear of spreading diseases such as hepatitis.

As time goes on, other customs are also changing. These days most people keep their own glass and offer just offer the alcohol to others. So, in the case when someone returns the alcohol in the same glass, the person needs to ask permission first before offering alcohol in the same glass the person received. In this case, turn the glass upside down to empty completely any remaining drink and offer that glass of alcohol right away without eating any side dishes. Always offer the glass in the right hand.


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