Traditional Korean meals are noted for the number of side dishes (banchan) that accompany steam-cooked short-grain rice.

Many Koreatowns are actual ethnic enclaves where nearly four-fifths of migrant Koreans live in just three countries: China, the United States and Mexico.

In recent years, there has been a huge move from the Bajo Flores towards the Avellaneda Avenue, the reason being the increasing theft and insecurity around the slums close to Avenida Castanares.

The Korean consulate in Brazil said that the municipal government in São Paulo has designated Bom Retiro as 'Koreatown' and could pass an ordinance that will see the city provide administrative and financial support to the new community.

The highest concentration of Koreans is found near Lougheed Town Centre in Burnaby, British Columbia and in the adjacent city of Coquitlam.

[16] Along the North Road (from Delestre Ave (South) to Burquitlam Skytrain Station (North)), sizable supermarkets such as Hannam Supermarket and H Mart, hair shops, Korean restaurants, bars, law firms, accountants' offices, realty offices, child care, clinics and auto repair shops are to be found.

For a few years, following the housing boom, the number of Korean Canadians has increased in Langley, Surrey, Port Coquitlam, Maple Ridge, Mission and Abbotsford, and more businesses are opening up shops and offices in east Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley.

Consequently, the recruiter for labourers for the Hawaiian Sugar Planters' Association (HSPA), David Deshler, had no trouble finding Koreans from a wide range of social classes willing to sail to Hawaii.

This particular section of Lawrence Avenue has been officially designated by the city of Chicago as "Seoul Drive" because of the multitude of Korean-owned enterprises on the street.

More recently, L.A.'s Koreatown has been perceived to have experienced declining political power secondary to re-districting[36] and an increased crime rate,[37] prompting an exodus of Koreans from the area.

Originally the area was established as an enclave when Korean War veterans stationed at the nearby Fort Eustis brought home wives from Korea.

The heart of the district is the block of 32nd Street between Fifth Avenue and Broadway, officially nicknamed "Korea Way", which features stores on multiple stories, with small, independently run establishments reaching up to the third or fourth floors, including restaurants, exuding an ambience of Seoul.

It has continued to expand rapidly eastward through the neighborhoods of Murray Hill,[63] Bayside, Douglaston and Little Neck,[59] and into adjacent suburban Nassau County, Long Island.

[59] They established a foothold on Union Street in Flushing between 35th and 41st Avenues,[59] featuring restaurants and karaoke (noraebang) bars, grocery markets, education centers and bookstores, banking institutions, offices, electronics vendors, apparel boutiques and other commercial enterprises.

The eastward pressure was created in part by the inability to move westward due to the formidable presence of the enormous Flushing Chinatown (法拉盛華埠; Fǎlā Shèng Huá Bù) centered on Main Street.

[89] Korean chaebols have established North American headquarters operations in Bergen County, including Samsung,[90] LG Corp,[91] and Hanjin Shipping.

[92] Korean professionals have also expanded northward into the Northern Valley area and more recently, into adjacent Rockland County, New York.

Route 303 in Tappan, New York, Rockland County, has become the hub of Korean activity in the Lower Hudson Valley area.

This segment of Telegraph Avenue is lined with bright banners proclaiming the district as "Koreatown-Northgate" with the slogan "Oakland's got Seoul" and accompanied by an annual cultural festival.

[94] There has been criticism from the non-Korean residents about the city officially naming the district Koreatown, mostly from the African American population who form the majority in the area.

[97][98][99] Koreatown in Annandale, Virginia[100][101][102] starts at the intersection of Little River Turnpike and Hummer Road, runs for 1.5 miles to the turnpike's intersection with Evergreen Lane and provides a hub for the 93,787 individuals of Korean descent residing in the Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia, DC-MD-VA-WV Combined Statistical Area, as estimated by the 2009 American Community Survey.

Businesses and establishments include accountants, banks, bakeries, billiards, bookstores, churches, college preparatory classrooms, cybercafés, department stores, newspapers, optometrists, real estate offices, restaurants and salons.

[107] Shenyang has a large Koreatown known as Xita/Sŏtap/Seotap (Chinese: 西塔; pinyin: Xītǎ; Korean: 서탑, Seotab) meaning Western Pagoda.

There is a separate group of more recent migrants from South Korea with strong links to their home country, and there is a considerable cultural gap between these so-called "newcomers" and the Zainichi Koreans.

The low rents and willingness of landlords to accept foreign tenants attracted Korean and other Asian migrants to the area.

Other immigrants from China, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, and various other nationalities including Muslim and Nepali operated stores make this one of the most colourful and multicultural areas in Tokyo.

The area around Mikawashima station on the Jōban Line, to the north of the city, is a Koreatown dominated by Zainichi immigrants from Jeju island.

Following the increase in the Korean population, the number of restaurants and retailers aimed at the community is on the rise, with a majority of these establishments setting up in Tanjong Pagar.

Korean businesses include two large supermarkets (H Mart and Korea Foods), several corner shops, cafés, karaoke bars, travel agents, hair dressers, butchers and over 20 restaurants.

[137] Melbourne's de facto[138] Koreatown is concentrated around the vicinity of La Trobe Street, specifically Healeys Lane.