How to celebrate Pepero Day, Korea's sweetest tradition

By Park Jin-hai

• Published Nov 9, 2026 12:00 PM KST

If you happen to be in Korea on Nov. 11, you might notice store shelves overflowing with boxes of thin, chocolate-coated biscuit sticks. Welcome to Pepero Day, one of Korea’s most vibrant and fun informal holidays.

First launched by Lotte Wellfood in 1983, Pepero has grown from a simple brand name into a household term representing all long, thin biscuit sticks here.

Legend has it that the phenomenon started in the 1990s when middle school students in Yeongnam began exchanging the biscuit sticks with a sweet wish, "May we both grow tall and slender!"

Today, the tradition has evolved into a nationwide celebration of friendship, romance and affection, where exchanging Pepero sticks is the ultimate way to show someone you care.

Whether you are looking for a quick wallet-friendly treat or an over-the-top artisan gift, here is your complete guide to navigating Pepero Day.

Convenience store favorites

Participating in Korea’s most popular November tradition does not require breaking the bank. Ahead of Nov. 11, the country’s leading convenience store chains — CU, GS25, 7-Eleven and Emart24 — decorate their store fronts with giant displays of Pepero. For 1,500 won to 2,000 won (about $1.1 to $1.5) per box, consumers can sample a wide lineup ranging from nostalgic staples to seasonal releases.

The lineup begins with the foundational original chocolate stick in its iconic red box, which pairs a slender, crisp biscuit with a simple milk chocolate coating. For those who prefer a richer texture, the green-boxed almond variety, which comes covered in chocolate and crushed roasted nuts, remains a crowd favorite.

To solve the problem of chocolate-covered fingers, the uncoated version reverses the traditional design by placing the sweet filling inside a hollow wafer stick, delivering a clean yet crunchy bite. Fans of the cookies-and-cream flavor often gravitate toward the white chocolate-coated cookie stick, which is studded with chocolate cookie crumbles.

Beyond these everyday staples, shoppers can look out for limited seasonal drops featuring distinct tastes like matcha, peanut butter, choco cookie and popping candy. Leading up to the holiday, convenience stores frequently run buy-two-get-one-free promotions and showcase oversized gift boxes wrapped in popular animated character themes, making it easy to sample the entire collection.

High-end, artisan treats

Beyond the brightly lit aisles of neighborhood convenience stores overflowing with mass-produced red boxes, a quieter, more sophisticated tradition takes shape in Seoul’s trendy boutique districts every November. Artisan chocolatiers and independent bakeries across neighborhoods like Yeonnam-dong, Hannam-dong and Gangnam transform the humble, mass-market biscuit stick into an elevated culinary canvas.

Rather than using factory-extruded biscuit bases, pastry chefs hand-roll butter-rich sablé dough, crisp langue de chat or delicate pretzel batons. These bases are baked to precise crunchiness before being covered in single-origin dark chocolate, roasted matcha couverture or creamy white chocolate.

Soso Baking in Seongsu-dong, Seongdong District, is a trendy dessert studio viral on social media for its visual appeal, featuring unique creations like crispy-yet-moist Pepero-style financier pastries.

Chagok Patisserie in Yeonnam-dong elevates the treat to a premium level with its signature "Pabli" (Pepero-sablé), coating traditional buttery French sablé cookies in high-end chocolate; and Stick With Me in Apgujeong-dong, Gangnam District, offers its own version of Pepero, famous for its artisan craftsmanship and jewel-like visual appeal. Unlike standard commercial snack sticks, these are luxurious gourmet stick bonbons featuring rich, multilayered fillings coated in premium chocolate.

You can celebrate Pepero Day like a local by grabbing a couple of classic boxes from your neighborhood corner store on your morning walk to hand out to coworkers, classmates or your morning barista. Spreading the love is as simple as giving out those treats with a cheerful "Happy Pepero Day!" along the way.