Weekend trip to Korea...er Los Angeles

Took a weekend-ish trip to Korea(ntown) and here are the quick highlights, drumroll please!

#6. Holly's Coffee. A trip down Sentimental Lane. I <3 you, sweet potato latte.


#5. Cafe on 8th and Hobart (I don't recall the name). A bit pricey, but I've been told that any cafe in K-town is pricey. The outdoor deck is charming, and I can imagine it'd be really romantic at night.


#4. Chosun Kalbi. Can you believe I forgot to take out my camera?! The mul naengmyeon was one of the best I've ever had, and Sam and Carol seemed to like the kalbi, too. I think you pay for the upscale ambiance here.

#3. Mapo Dak Kalbi. This hole in the wall will set you back about $40 for two, but it's the only dak kalbi place I've come across stateside. There are no menus, and they didn't give us any banchan (or water!) until we asked in Korean. Once they found out the hapa could speak in mother tongue (gasp!), service took a dramatic turn for the better... in fact, they were downright friendly.




#2. Gaam. Introducing fruit soju and the concept of anju to friends is quite entertaining. As is walking into this place in general... it's what Tao might look like if you stepped into Korea. Ok, maybe not, but I kinda like this place - it's clean, modern, filled with good looking people, and heck, isn't corn cheese reason enough? The only downside? Cigarettes!

Before: OMG, we just ate dinner and we're stuffed, how are you expecting us to eat that? Can't we just drink?


After: Anything's possible.


#1. Ssa Rit Gol. The service kinda stinks, but the ono eats make up for it.




Thanks to Janice and Nhu for resisting the urge to knock me over the head in the midst of my giddy K-town excitement, Anna for being just as excited if not more, Sam and Carol for introducing me to the yummy spots, and 성희언니 for making me feel like I was in Korea again...

Thursday food diary: Agu jjim and cake

Dear Food Diary:

I promise once I'm back Stateside, I'll be better, e.g. I won't drink soda for breakfast. Yes, today I had a can of Fanta for breakfast. Can. Of. Fanta. Normally I wouldn't do this. I don't even drink Fanta, especially after those horrid Wanta Fanta commercials scarred me for life. Besides, I've always been more of a Sunkist type of gal. Not that I really drank that either. But something screamed orange fizz at me today and I went for it. Damn those street carts and my lack of discipline.

I was kind of hoping to eat some dak kalbi for lunch, but a turn of events led us to Caribou instead, so I had a soy latte and a taste of something called "cheesecake." Let's just say you shouldn't go to Caribou for dessert.



SJ suggested agu jjim (아구찜) for dinner so we checked out a recommended place called 천벙 in Gangnam. It was creamy and spicy and a lot tastier than my first my first Korean agu experience. Still, I think this is one of those dishes that needs to grow on you.



We later headed to a recently opened Take Urban, a pretty lil Korean based cafe chain, and SJ spotted the owner checking things out. It was packed all night - he's got nothing to worry about. Except maybe carrot cake. It's been a while since I've had carrot cake (or seen it in this country!), perhaps I've forgotten what it's supposed to taste like. But I do recall carrots... oh and cream cheese frosting. This must have been the extra light carrotless version. Carrot cake, I will bake you right once I have access to an oven.



Excuse me, I need to go take a few laps around the track right about now. Or run a marathon.

Sunday food diary

Dear Food Diary:

과식했나보다... > _ <

#1) Lunch at a noisy and packed institution in Myeongdong for gom tang (곰탕), beef soup with rice (no, I still don't eat beef) and way too much ggakdugi (깍두기). This was my first time trying it with ggak guk (깍국), basically the "soup" (liquid) from ggakdugi kimchi - good stuff, Koreans sure do know how to make the most of everything!




#2) Afternoon UFO pastry from the "dessert gallery" at Passion 5...it tasted like a cross between a roti bun and gyeran bbang (egg bread) minus the huge boiled egg.




#3) Passion 5 pudding... yum.




#4) Afternoon iced mocha latte, a rich dessert in itself, from Wein Bakery (because apparently you can't sit at Passion 5 without making a reservation).



#5) Dinner at Czen Asian Noodle Bar, nothing special. At this point, I was already stuffed and really didn't feel like eating (gasp!) but still managed to throw down some kung pao chicken and noodles.






#6) An impromptu roti bun from Rotiboy... because roti buns are good even when you think you can't possibly eat another bite!



#7) Iced dark chocolate (70%) in a cup from Lucycato. (I have to say, the 45% dark blend goes down much smoother.)




Off to Jeju in a few hours to visit some fam where the eating inevitably continues... wish me luck.

Sincerely stuffed and yours,
C

It's like drinking chocolate

Iced chocolate heaven is now available at the recently opened Lucycato shop around Ewha Women's University. If you like to chew on your drinks (yes, it's sort of like drinking melted chocolate), then this is the place for you. Plus, it's pretty and girly and a little Jetsons-esque, if that's your sort of thing. Not only do they sell chocolate in a cup, but you can also find ice cream, fancy little cakes, and truffles... everything chocolate, just my kind of place. ^^

Jjimdak and tea

As I proudly ate my jjimdak (찜닭) without wincing or gulping down a half gallon of water, I thought my tolerance for spice was improving, having been in Korea for half a year. That was, until, my friend informed me in blunt Korean fashion, "I asked them not to make it too hot for you."



I've always loved jjimdak - no, I take that back - the very first time I had it, I thought a fire had broken out in my mouth, and at that point, I only sort of liked it. But jjimdak - a braised chicken dish served in a shoyu based sauce (usually accompanied with chewy glass noodles, potatoes, onions, and the occasional carrot and mushroom) - has since grown on me. You see, its unassuming heat makes it all the more adventurous. As you begin to dig in, the first thing your taste buds notice is the powerful mixture of sweet n salty. It isn't until a second or two later that you realize you're dealing with a healthy dose of garlic and chili pepper.

Having eaten jjimdak with three people from Hawaii - they (and I) have all agreed that it somehow reminds us of home. Shoyu chicken, maybe? Sukiyaki, perhaps? As we try to wrap our heads around what makes it so familiar, one thing's for certain - jjimdak is packed with flavor. There are quite a few places that serve jjimdak, and based on personal experience, it seems pretty hard to go wrong. However, Andong Jjim Dak and Bongchu Jjim Dak are popular choices, and if you happen to be in the Myeongdong (명동) area, simply ask around, and you shall find.



If you're looking for a way to soothe yourself from all that heated flavor, I recommend taking a trip to O'Sulloc Tea House. According to Lonely Planet, "Everything is produced from the green tea picked on the company's tea plantation on Jejudo." We ordered the tropical dream green tea, which was recommended by our waitress. Quite rightly one of the most popular selections, it's a mild tea that packs a wonderful fruity scent. The desserts didn't disappoint either, but it was the cafe's light wood and green surroundings that topped it off, allowing for a relaxing break away from the busy crowds, bright lights, and noise of Myeongdong.



After having been rejuvenated, we continued our walk all the way to Cheonggyecheon. Despite the heat, the people couples were out in force!





I'll miss you guys! ㅠㅠ

How to gain 6 lbs in one week - Pt 2/2

...continued from below.

#10) Partake in a donut challenge, or any other taste test that your heart desires. I consumed more donuts in this one week period, than in my entire six months in Korea.


The overall winner was Doughnut Plant, despite my lukewarm response the first time around. We particularly enjoyed the hot pink donut pictured below (it might have been called Cassis?) and the Tres Leches, but most were pretty tasty, with the exception of their buns - dry, dry, and could-you-get-any-drier?! The Boston Globe recently did an article on the NY import.



#11) Expand your donut taste test to include other members of the pastry family. For example, let a fresh baked, warm roti bun melt in your mouth (street smarts tell us a room temperature roti bun won't taste half as good), or just start sampling everything at your local Paris Baguette or Paris Croissant, where it seems difficult to go wrong. Better yet, a trip to the basement of a Myeongdong department store is like walking into dessert heaven!



#12) Hit a cute cafe and get a serving of waffles or pancakes, drenched in sweet gooey goodness. We checked out the Sunnyside Cafe in Samcheongdong (삼청동) which had a very... sunny (?) atmosphere - unfortunately their pancakes were on the dry side... and should have been topped with ice cream!



#13) Splurge on dessert! It's hard to go wrong at Above (a wine bar in Itaewon). We also enjoyed our cheesecake at Walking Slowly near Dosan Park. And most of the other cafes/bakeries around Apgujeong are temptingly delicious!



#14) Finally, don't forget about the non-baked sweets... ice cream, yogurt, gelato, lattes, smoothies... mmmh!

Mmmh, dak kalbi

Everytime I eat chicken kalbi (닭갈비), I feel *extra* compelled to document the experience on camera. ^^ So here we go, just another night of eating with some of my lovely fam.

Waiting for a seat in the Sinchon (신촌) branch of 춘천집 (I think) in the sweltering heat.



3 orders of chicken for the four of us (I think that's a good ratio if you're planning to add sides like extra rice cakes or noodles... and especially if you want to eat fried rice afterwards!)



The basic order usually comes with chicken, cabbage, potato, rice cakes, sesame leaves, and chili paste. My only complaint is that this dish is a bit on the greasy side. How great would it be to offer a "well-being" version? Cooking spray instead of gollops of oil and lean chicken breast instead of skin-on, fatty rib/thigh pieces? I'd shell out the extra cash for that.



Start to stir fry!



In a few minutes, you end up with this.



Add your favorites sides (we got 2 orders of noodles), and dig in!



When meal #1 is nearly over, order a couple sides of rice and fry up meal #2 - bokkum bap! Even better with cheese.



As always, we ended up stuffed, but took a walk to Caribou Coffee near Ehwa. I wasn't particularly impressed, although the little guy's nokcha ice blend was pretty darn good. Is he too young to be drinking green tea lattes?



Cheesecake and some sort of cake - too creamy and too dry, respectively.



MC is officially en route to Seoul! ^_____^

Let the real eating begin...