5 Best Korean Snacks Foreign Tourists Stuff in Their Suitcases (US Buying Guide)

By Jina Moon • Updated September 2026 • I watched tourists zip suitcases full of snacks in Myeongdong — then came home and taste-tested all 5 with my family in Washington

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. I bought everything below with my own money.

Quick answer: The best Korean snacks to buy right now are Bichobi (gift-perfect chocolate biscuit), Honey Butter Chips (safest first bite), Banana Kick + Shrimp Crackers (Jennie’s famous picks), yakgwa (honey cookies), and yugwa (shattering rice crackers). Below: what each one actually tastes like, who will love it, and exact US Amazon links — no suitcase required.

Last fall in Myeongdong, I watched a tourist sit on her suitcase to zip it shut. It wasn’t clothes making it bulge. It was a wall of Bichobi boxes and Honey Butter Chips, stacked like bricks. I laughed — then looked down at my own shopping bags, which contained the exact same wall, in smaller form. The cashier just nodded. She’d seen this movie a thousand times.

Korean snacks used to be an afterthought — a bag of shrimp crackers tossed in at the airport. Not anymore. In 2024 and 2025, Korean media kept reporting the same scene: foreigners in Myeongdong, Hongdae, and Seongsu buying snacks by the carrier-load, plus dedicated K-snack discount shops popping up to serve them. So I did what I always do: I bought the 5 most-mentioned best Korean snacks, brought them back to Washington, and taste-tested them with my husband (picky) and my 7-year-old (brutally honest). Here’s what’s actually worth your money — and where to get each one in the US.

Best Korean Snacks at a Glance

Jina’s rule: buying for yourself? Start with Honey Butter Chips. Buying for someone else? Bichobi — the box does half the work. Want the full ranking logic? I use the same “would my family finish the bag” test as my 5 kimchi taste test.

1. Bichobi — The Hanbok-Package Gift

If you buy exactly one box of the best Korean snacks for gifts, make it this one. Bichobi is Orion’s deceptively simple idea: a whole milk-chocolate bar sandwiched between two hearty wheat biscuits. Imagine a digestive biscuit hugging a chocolate bar — crunchy outside, melty middle, zero confusion about what you’re eating.

Why do tourists grab it by the armful? Three reasons. First, the box looks like a hanbok — Korea’s traditional dress — so it screams “I went to Korea” without any wrapping. Second, the taste needs no explanation; chocolate + biscuit translates into every language. Third, Korean media reported its sales jumped over 60% in early 2024 vs. the year before, with foreign buyers driving the spike — and cumulative sales passed 28 million pieces by fall 2025. Numbers like that don’t lie.

My tasting notes: my kid took one bite and said “it’s like a fancy KitKat, but the cookie part is better.” My husband — who claims he “doesn’t like sweet snacks” — ate three and then asked if there were more in the pantry. There were not. There are now (Amazon).

Allergy note: contains wheat and dairy. Not gluten-free — if that’s you, skip to my gluten-free Korean food guide for safe swaps first.

Buy it: Check price on Amazon →

2. Honey Butter Chips — The Safest First Bite

Some snacks are fireworks. Honey Butter Chips are the fireplace — warm, steady, always there. Since 2014, Haitai’s honey-butter potato chips have sold a reported 360 million bags, and they still sit at the top of Korea’s snack rankings. When a snack survives a decade in Korea’s brutal snack wars, you pay attention.

The flavor is exactly what the name promises: honey sweetness melting into buttery potato, with salt holding the whole thing together. Think kettle chips met honey-mustard, then decided to be friends instead of fighting. It’s sweet-salty, never weird, never fishy, never spicy — which is precisely why it’s the best Korean snack for beginners. If someone has never tasted Korean food, this bag is the handshake.

Tourist logic is simple: the name tells you the taste (no translator needed), it’s everywhere from convenience stores to airports (trust through visibility), and one bag never survives the flight home. My family test: the bag was empty in 11 minutes. I timed it. For science.

Allergy note: contains dairy (butter) and potato processed in shared facilities — check the label if severely allergic.

Buy it: Check price on Amazon →

3. Banana Kick, Shrimp Crackers & Whale Crackers — The Jennie Effect

These three Nongshim classics were already beloved in Korea for decades. Then BLACKPINK’s Jennie reportedly named Banana Kick, Shrimp Crackers (Saeukkang), and whale-shaped crackers (Goraebab) among her favorite Korean snacks on a US talk show — and Korean media went into a frenzy. One report even claimed Nongshim’s market value jumped by hundreds of billions of won within days. One sentence from Jennie, and suddenly every Myeongdong mart needed a “Jennie’s Pick” corner.

So what do they actually taste like? Here’s my honest breakdown for American mouths:

• Banana Kick: puffy corn sticks with sweet banana flavor. If banana Laffy Taffy and Cheetos Puffs had a baby — light, airy, weirdly addictive. My kid’s #1. Smells strong, tastes gentle.
• Shrimp Crackers (Saeukkang): toasty, puffy, savory-sweet with real shrimp flavor. Like the prawn crackers from Chinese takeout, but snack-sized and crunchier. Korea’s #1 snack by retail sales two years running (2024–2025 reports). My husband’s #1 — he eats them with beer like popcorn.
• Whale crackers (Goraebab): tiny crispy fish-shaped crackers, lightly sweet-salty. Think Goldfish crackers’ crispier Korean cousin, with actual seafood flavor. The shape alone makes kids happy.

Why tourists love the trio: they’re cheap per bag, light to carry, impossible to find in these exact flavors abroad, and “Jennie’s favorites” is the world’s easiest gift story. (“Oh, this? Just what Jennie eats. No big deal.”)

Allergy note: Shrimp Crackers and whale crackers contain shellfish/fish + wheat. Banana Kick contains milk and soy (check label) — read before gifting.

Buy them: Banana Kick → · Shrimp Crackers →

4. Yakgwa — Honey Cookies That Became K-Dessert

Yakgwa (약과) is Korea’s centuries-old honey cookie — wheat flour kneaded with sesame oil and honey, fried, then soaked in spiced syrup. The result is dense, chewy, deeply honeyed, with whispers of cinnamon and ginger. If a donut and gingerbread had a slow, traditional Korean baby, it would be yakgwa.

For years, yakgwa was “grandma’s holiday snack.” Then young Koreans rediscovered it as K-dessert: yakgwa-topped ice cream, yakgwa with espresso, giant yakgwa in hip Seongsu cafes. Tourists followed — it’s the most giftable traditional sweet because it keeps for weeks, survives suitcases, and looks beautiful in a box. No fridge, no rush, no crumbs explosion.

How to eat it like a Korean: room temperature, with barley tea or black tea (never soda — trust me). One piece with afternoon tea, eyes closed. That’s the whole ceremony. My tasting notes: my husband said “it’s like baklava decided to become a cookie.” My kid said “chewy honey. More.” Both accurate.

Allergy note: contains wheat, honey, and often soy. Not vegan (honey), not gluten-free.

Buy it: Check price on Amazon →

5. Jocheong Yugwa — The Crunchiest Korean Gift

If yakgwa is the hug, yugwa (유과) is the high-five. These traditional rice crackers are made by puffing glutinous rice, frying it shatteringly crisp, and glazing it with jocheong (Korean rice syrup). The texture is unreal — like mochi and Rice Krispies had a crunchy baby, then rolled it in honey glass. Loud. Joyful. Completely unlike any Western cracker.

Tourists love yugwa for the same reason they love Bichobi: it looks unmistakably Korean (often boxed beautifully with traditional patterns), it keeps well, and one bite tells a story. “This is what Koreans ate at royal banquets” beats “this is a chip” at every gift exchange. Fair warning: it’s sweet and sticky-fingered — serve with tea and napkins, not on a white couch.

Good news for some diets: yugwa is USUALLY wheat-free (rice-based), but recipes vary — honey glaze, shared fryers, and added flavorings differ by brand. Check the label; celiac readers should stick to my certified-pick list.

Buy it: Check price on Amazon →

My Exact US Amazon Links (All 5 Best Korean Snacks)

I don’t copy prices or star ratings here — they change constantly and mix sellers. Use each link to see the current listing, and match the brand + product name before ordering. (Tip: add a few to one cart to hit free shipping — snacks last months in a cool pantry.)

• Bichobi (gift box) — Check price on Amazon →
• Honey Butter Chips — Check price on Amazon →
• Banana Kick — Check price on Amazon →
• Shrimp Crackers — Check price on Amazon →
• Yakgwa honey cookies — Check price on Amazon →
• Yugwa rice crackers — Check price on Amazon →

On Amazon, buy “Sold by Amazon” or official brand stores when possible — random third-party sellers sometimes ship stale or close-to-expiry snacks at tourist-trap prices. Full store strategy in my Amazon vs H Mart vs Weee! guide.

H Mart vs Amazon: Where Should YOU Buy Snacks?

Short version from someone who does both monthly: Amazon wins for pantry snacks like these five — 2-day delivery, easy returns, no 40-minute drive. H Mart wins for fresh stuff (kimchi, tteok, perilla leaves) and limited-edition flavors you’ll never see online. My routine: Amazon for the snack wall, H Mart for the fresh haul. New to the whole pantry? Start with my Korean Pantry Essentials: 10 to Buy First.

Bottom Line: Best Korean Snacks to Buy in the US

• Best gift? Bichobi — the hanbok box says “Korea” for you.
• Best first bite? Honey Butter Chips — zero-risk sweet-salty joy.
• Best story? The Jennie trio — Banana Kick + Shrimp Crackers.
• Best traditional sweet? Yakgwa with tea, afternoon ceremony included.
• Best crunch? Yugwa — loud, proud, unforgettable.

If you buy Korean snacks twice a year, keep Honey Butter Chips + one gift box (Bichobi or yakgwa) always stocked. It fixes 80% of “I need a fun gift by Friday” problems.

Next reads:

Where to Buy Korean Ingredients Online (Amazon vs H Mart vs Weee!) · Is Korean Food Gluten-Free? The Honest Guide · Korean Pantry Essentials: 10 to Buy First

FAQ: Best Korean Snacks

What is the most popular Korean snack for tourists right now?

Bichobi and Honey Butter Chips lead tourist sales in Seoul (2024–2025 reports), with Banana Kick, Shrimp Crackers, and yakgwa close behind — all linked in this guide with US Amazon options.

What Korean snacks did Jennie recommend?

Korean media reported Jennie named Banana Kick, Shrimp Crackers, and whale-shaped crackers among her favorites on a US talk show — tourist demand for the “Jennie picks” jumped right after.

Where can I buy Korean snacks online in the US?

Amazon for pantry snacks (Bichobi, chips, crackers, yakgwa), H Mart for fresh and limited editions. See my Amazon vs H Mart guide linked above for the full comparison.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you if you buy through my links. I only recommend products I’ve bought with my own money. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Questions? Contact Jina →

Written by Jina Moon • Seoul-born, Washington-based. Snacks taste-tested on my kitchen table with my husband and 7-year-old.