Drinking no longer default for Korea's Gen Z

Drinking no longer default for Korea's Gen Z

On a recent weeknight near Seoul's Hongdae area in Mapo District, a group of students gathered at Yeokjeon Halmaek, a familiar bar franchise. They ordered cans of zero-sugar Coke and a single highball, splitting one shot among four glasses. No one asked for soju. For bar owners, scenes like this now feel routine. "Alcohol is usually where the margins are," a worker at the Hongdae bar told The Korea Times on the condition of anonymity. "So now wh…