Some of the "cup rice stalls," a distinct feature around the Noryangjin Station in Dongjak-gu, Seoul, were torn down after conflicts with the area's shop owners concerning business rights.
The stalls fried rice with various meats and vegetables and served them in paper cups, making it a popular menu among people on the move or who needed a quick meal.

The Dongjak-gu Office announced it confiscated four stalls selling cup rice near Noryangjin Station at around 5:30 a.m. on January 23. An official from the local government said, "We requested a voluntary evacuation on countless occasions since last spring. The forced closure was inevitable because the street vendors did not show any efforts to resolve the situation."

Conflicts between the cup rice stalls near Noryangjin Station and the area's shop owners have been on-going for several years. The street vendors sold the so-called cup rice-fried rice with kimchi, fried rice with vegetables and ham, etc. in a cup-for 2000~3000 won. As it became a popular menu among the people preparing for national examinations in the area, shop owners began complaining about their drop in sales.

Restaurant owners in the vicinity of Noryangjin Station claimed that the illegal operations of the cup rice stalls violated their business rights and continued to submit civil complaints to the local government office since last year.

Yang Yong, head of the Noryangjin branch of the Korea Democratic Street Vendors Confederation said, "The survival of the street vendors are on the line, so they cannot just take away everything. The members of the confederation are trying to do their part by running their stalls only during fixed operation hours from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. and avoiding similar menus with nearby restaurants."