Why Everyone Is Talking About Chang-eok Rice Cake’s Pumpkin Injeolmi: A Viral Sensation in Gwangju!

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A Gwangju rice-cake shop has gone viral on social media, sparking a so-called “tteok-peun” run — basically a mad dash to buy its rice cakes.

Chang-eok Tteok is a neighborhood rice-cake shop in Gwangju. Its breakout item, pumpkin injeolmi, has become a sensation. Think chewy pumpkin glutinous rice cake dusted in castella crumbs.

According to Naver Data Lab on the 22nd, search-index scores for “Chang-eok Tteok” and “pumpkin injeolmi” hovered around 10–20 over the past year (excluding holiday spikes) before jumping to 100 on the 19th.

Google Trends shows searches for those terms were essentially zero through March 6, then rose to 27 and 25 on March 7. By March 18, searches for Chang-eok Tteok peaked at 100 — about a fourfold increase in roughly two weeks. A viral YouTube video and a shout-out from a popular singer helped fuel the sudden surge.

On the 5th, the YouTube channel Hamalneomman, which has 770,000 subscribers, uploaded a video titled “Gwangju VLOG: Trying everything from duck soup to insane rice cakes.” The clip featured Chang-eok Tteok and has since racked up 480,000 views. A short clip showing someone eating the pumpkin injeolmi spread widely on X (formerly Twitter), drawing even more attention; that post recorded about 8.89 million views.

Young K, a member of the band DAY6, also mentioned the rice cake. DAY6 held concerts in Gwangju on the 14th and 15th, and the combined buzz from the YouTuber and the singer amplified interest on social media, sending more people to the shop.

Chang-eok Tteok’s flagship store is in Junghung-dong, Buk-gu, Gwangju. Even on weekdays, customers line up to buy its rice cakes. After KBO exhibition games began on March 12, more baseball fans stopped by the store. Some are already saying Chang-eok Tteok could become a regional landmark, similar to Daejeon’s Seongsimdang.

The shop sells its products through brick-and-mortar stores and an online shop. On the 18th, the official online store posted a pop-up notice: “Due to a sudden surge in parcel volume, deliveries are slightly delayed. We will reward your patience with even tastier, fresher rice cakes.” The site also warned that terminal deliveries they previously offered are temporarily unavailable because of overwhelming orders.

Following trends like Dubai chewy cookies, spring-greens bibimbap, and butter ddeok, Chang-eok Tteok highlights how quickly food trends and consumer habits can shift thanks to social media.
Intern reporter Baehyeon Bae baehyeonui@hankyung.com