The first Western outpost of the restaurant chain was opened in Amsterdam in 2012, in the residential neighbourhood of Osdorp, along with Dutch co-owners.[10] The menu and policies of this restaurant differed from its Asian counterparts. However, in September 2012, amid mutual accusations between the Korean staff and the Dutch partner, the restaurant closed.[11] It reopened in December 2013 under the name Haedanghwa in a new location,[3] but closed a year later.
The restaurant's locations in Bangkok were temporarily shut down,[12] but were re-opened again in 2015[citation needed]. Similarly, their branches in Pattaya were closed down. The branch in Ho Chi Minh City closed down in 2017 and the branch in Hanoi shut down in 2020.[13][14]
It was reported that a new branch was set to open in Scotland, in line with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's interest in the country after its 2014 independence referendum, although this has been denied by North Korean officials.[15][16] According to Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper there are some 100 North Korean restaurants in China alone.[citation needed]
The staff consists of young Korean women in traditional Chosŏn-ot dress, who also perform karaoke as well as song and dance routines in the style of the North Korean Mass Games for the customers.[8][17] Staff from North Korea typically work on three year contracts, and are often highly trained graduates of arts colleges.[4] Photography is generally not permitted inside.[4][8]
Operation
According to Swedish journalist Bertil Lintner, the restaurants are one of several overseas business ventures of Room 39, a North Korean government organization dedicated to acquiring and laundering foreign currency for the North Korean leadership.[8]
North Korean defectors have reported that the restaurants are run by local middlemen, who are required to send money every year to the North Korean government.[8][17] The North Korean staff, who live on the restaurant premises,[4] are said to be thoroughly screened for political loyalty and to be closely watched by on-site North Korean security agents.[8] In the 2000s, according to Daily NK, several attempted escapes by waitresses in China led to the closure of several restaurants and the repatriation of the staff.[18][19] In 2016, Chinese authorities announced that 13 restaurant workers had defected from Pyongyang restaurants in Сhina to South Korea.[20][21]