"Expletive!!" Italian Asian Restaurant Promotes Korean Cuisine with Profanity, Causing Outrage

[Financial News] An Asian restaurant in Italy is facing controversy for promoting Korean cuisine using Korean profanity.
Seo Kyoung-duk, a professor at Sungshin Women's University, stated on the 5th via his Social Networking Service (SNS) account, "After receiving reports from Koreans living in Italy, I checked and found that the restaurant had posted advertisements on its SNS featuring videos with Korean expletives such as 'ssiX.'"
Located in Palermo, the capital and largest city of the Sicilian Region, the restaurant offers a variety of Korean cuisine such as fried chicken and Tteokbokki, as well as other Asian dishes.
Professor Seo pointed out, "Riding the Korean Wave (Hallyu), locals across Europe are opening Korean restaurants one after another. However, no matter how popular Korean cuisine is worldwide, promoting it in this manner is truly inappropriate."
He added, "The Korean sentences in the video are completely ungrammatical, and especially, the use of Korean profanity could lead to serious misunderstandings among foreigners."
He continued, "Recently, when a new Korean restaurant opened in Romania, the Rising Sun Flag, a symbol of Japanese militarism, was used, prompting protests and immediate correction. I will also take prompt action to address this issue."
Previously, in September, a Korean restaurant that opened in Cluj-Napoca, the second-largest city in Romania, sparked controversy for its Japanese-style interior, which included the Rising Sun Flag, a symbol of Japanese militarism.
Professor Seo further stated, "While we cannot criticize locals for using the Korean Wave for business, it is essential to point out and correct the spread of inaccurate Korean culture," and reported that he had raised the issue with the restaurant.
Afterward, Professor Seo shared, "The restaurant explained that the Rising Sun Flag mural was left by the previous tenant and admitted it was a significant mistake not to remove it before opening. They sincerely apologized to Koreans and sent photos showing the changed interior."
moon@fnnews.com Moon Young-jin Reporter