Recent eats: Outback, Doughnut Plant, Haemultang, Mr. Pizza, and good ol' Starbucks

I can't believe I ended up at Outback Steakhouse again - I believe it's my third visit in Korea. This time, it was a result of desperately seeking a well air-conditioned area that would allow for ample loitering time. Around Sinchon, I couldn't really think of anything else off the top of my head. I was really craving naengmyun, but you can't typically "hang out" in a naengmyun restaurant, considering that it takes about 5 minutes to slurp down on a summer day.

Lunch specials at Outback range from around $15-30, depending on your entree, and come with:

• All you can eat bread and butter (Don't forget to ask for 1. chocolate dipping sauce on the side and 2. packaged loaves of bread to go, I'm not kidding.)
  
• Pickles (You can't escape them in Korea! But Outback's taste fresher and are less sweet than most other restaurants'.)
• Soup of the day
• 2 beverages - soda during the meal, and coffee/green tea after the meal.

Not a bad deal, considering the plates are pretty huge and very easily sharable. We opted for the "spicy rice" dish with chicken and shrimp, which was better than I expected.



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Recently checked out the newly opened Doughnut Plant branch (an American import) in Sinchon. With Krispy Kreme, Dunkin Donuts, Paris Baguette, Crown Bakery, and a whole bunch of cafes around the corner, I wonder if this place will survive, with its pricey organic donuts? I like the "all natural" concept - these donuts are free of preservatives, artificial flavoring, eggs, and transfats - but I wasn't particularly impressed with our first visit's $3.60 peanut butter and raspberry jelly square donut. As you might tell, it's pretty freakin' huge, but also a little dry, and could use a little more peanut flavor. Apparently the cake donuts are tastier - I'll have to try that on my next go.



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Oh, Korean pizza... In middle school, I remember telling my Italian friend about how I loved cheese stuffed crusts (Pizza Hut), blueberry cinnamon dessert pizzas (again, Pizza Hut), and pineapple and chicken pizza dipped in butter (Papa John's). Needless to say, he was pretty offended. I can only imagine his reaction if he were to visit a Korean pizza chain!

I've taken quite a liking to Mr. Pizza. In particular, I enjoy the salad buffet bar (the hobak salad is amazzzng), and the fact that you can stuff your crust with sweet potato puree. I mean, it doesn't get much more absurdly delicious than that. But a pizza lunch for 2 here will easily set you back $25 - 30. (After a few months, you start to think in terms of Korean meal prices. Everything's relative... when you can get a roll of kimbap for a dollar fifty or a bowl of soondubu jjigae for a fiver.)



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I thought it was about time I give a shout out to Starbucks. It doesn't get much better than the classic soy vanilla latte. Soy milk substitutes aren't very common in other coffee shops, so I usually default to Starbucks when I'm on the go. There's just something about you, Starbucks. You will always hold a place in my heart and wallet wherever I go - and you don't even pass out loyalty cards!



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Haemultang is a spicy and slightly sweet soup served with vegetables, rice cakes, and a variety of seafood. We ordered the "can you not make it so spicy" version, and trust me, it does a decent job at setting your mouth on fire on a hot day, especially once you turn off the heat, and the broth starts to thicken!




Next on my to eat list, after having read this article... fondue! Anyone want to join me? : )