A red "Green Onion Ramen Failure" notification flashing on the cooking status board.

Ramen noodles and soup powder scattered haphazardly across the counter and floor.

This was the scene at an unmanned highway service area's robot ramen corner that recently sparked a buzz online.

It appears to be an unexpected incident caused when a 24-hour unmanned "robot chef" dropped a block of ramen noodles midway through cooking a customer's order of green onion ramen.

In particular, the two clearly printed words "Failure" on the order status board brought a chuckle to netizens, reminiscent of item enhancement failure messages in online games.

Netizens responded lightheartedly, leaving comments such as "A human touch from a robot," "An era where you even gacha (draw) for ramen," "Do they cook it again if it fails?" and "Do they give refunds?"

Stepping into the food court at the Gapyeong Service Area (bound for Seoul) on the Seoul-Yangyang Expressway, where the robot ramen shop is in operation, an automated ramen cooking robot booth caught the eye right in front of a convenience store.

The robot was waiting with its long white arms swaying left and right as if beckoning customers.

The menu consists of a total of eight items.

Basic ramen is priced at 4,500 KRW, while green onion, kimchi, spicy, cheese, kimchi cheese, green onion cheese, and seafood jjamppong ramen are priced at 5,500 KRW.

While the price range is similar to regular food court ramen cooked by humans, there are differences in composition.

If human-cooked ramen tends to feature more generous toppings like eggs and green onions, the robot ramen is similar to the "Han River ramen" style utilizing instant ramen cookers.

The cooking process is prompt and consistent.

True to promotional slogans like "Precise cooking time" and "Consistent ingredient ratios," the robot placed noodles and soup into a dedicated paper container as soon as an order was received, boiling a bowl of ramen in just 4 minutes and 30 to 50 seconds.

It can cook up to four bowls simultaneously at once.

Although it was a somewhat quiet weekday morning, the unfamiliar movements of the ramen robot frequently caught the attention of passing visitors.

Family travelers with partners or children stopped in front of the booth's glass window, watching the cooking process with fascination.

Mr. Lee (54), who continuously took photos of the robot to share with friends, said, "I think foods with standardized recipes like ramen or coffee are fine for machines to make," adding, "For dishes like ramen where the amount of water matters, it probably tastes even better than when a human makes it."

The ramen robot was especially popular among children.

Clutched in their parents' arms, the kids gazed in wonder at the robot through the booth's glass window.

Bang (5), who ate the robot ramen with her mother, said, "The robot was fascinating, so I wanted to eat it."

When asked about the taste, she shouted, "100 points out of 10!"

Her mother, Mrs. Kang (33), said, "We stopped by the service area last week and wanted to eat it, but didn't have time, so we visited again this time."

She continued, "I usually like Han River ramen, and the price isn't that different," adding, "Even if it happens to fail in cooking, it doesn't feel burdensome, and I plan to use it again."

According to service area officials and other sources, following the Jukjeon and Cheongju service areas on the Gyeongbu Expressway, the Gapyeong Service Area has introduced the 3rd branch (bound for Chuncheon) and 4th branch (bound for Seoul).

The Seoul-bound store was installed last month and is currently undergoing a two-month trial operation period.

A representative for the robot developer explained, "There are cases where additional noodle blocks are pulled out together when the robot picks one up, or they drop too quickly," adding, "We process such instances as 'failures' and display them on the screen."

According to this representative, a "failure" alert has only popped up once or twice so far, in which case a staff member stationed on-site provides a refund.

Service areas introduced ramen robots to provide visual spectacles for visitors while steadily supplying food even during nighttime hours when labor is scarce.

Sales volume for the robot ramen averages about 60 bowls per day on weekdays, and about 140 bowls on weekends and holidays.

The true value of the robot shines during the early morning hours after all food court staff have gone home.

Even after the operating hours of regular food court restaurant corners (8:00 AM to 8:00 PM) end, the robot operates 24 hours to fill the gap.

Reviews have also been posted on online communities saying, "I went at 4:00 AM and the robot was operating, so I enjoyed a delicious bowl of ramen."

Amidst labor shortages, the adoption of cooking robots is steadily increasing, centered around service area stores operating for long hours.

According to data received from the Korea Expressway Corporation by People Power Party lawmaker Song Eon-seok last February, stores adopting service area cooking robots surged from 3 locations in 2021 to 103 locations last year.

A robot company official stated, "Errors can still occur when orders flood in all at once, so it is still in the early stages of checking and improving problems," and added, "We are also considering installations at ski resorts, college areas, factory cafeterias, and middle and high school canteens where students stay late for night self-study."

(Photo: Captured from internet community Ruliweb, Yonhap News)