In Korea for two weeks with DW, BIL, SIL and their two young daughters, 10 and 14yo. Good eaters all, except SIL.
Checked into our hotel at midnight. Started the food hunt minutes after.
Good Banchan to start. The star was the seasoned lightly toasted Nori. Perfect complement for the rice. The Cabbage Kimchee was also very good, must be the terroir.
Started with Octopus Scallion Pancake. Disappeared so fast, didn’t get a snap.
Didn’t get the name of the next dish, my niece ordered it for the fried egg. They were halfway finished with the bowl when the waitress instructed her to mix some hot rice with the ingredients. It was some kinda deconstructed Bibimbap. oops.
I cannot wait to read along. When I saw your subject line, I hurriedly got spring onion to school so I could come home and read your report. That’s the first time all week I’ve gotten him into school before 9 AM (he’s 4.5)!
Ginseng Chicken Soup is a classic must have when in Korea. The smallish bird is stuffed with glutinous rice and slow boiled with ginseng in individual pots. Ginseng is not a taste I particularly die for, but “when in Rome”…
The restaurant is huge, with at least 3 courtyards and multiple dining rooms. They seat over 300 covers per turn, mostly western style chairs, and some rooms with on the floor seating. No thanks.
B and I went to the chicken soup place when we transited through Seoul several years ago. It was the middle of January so it was freezing and no lines for lunch (we got there early due to our rushed schedule but the place was full by the time we left). We chose heated floor seating. I took sips of the broth while B devoured the chicken and soup. It totally hit the spot. I had some veggie or seafood dish but I can’t remember what.
I fact-checked myself by looking at my original post on Chowhound. We had an 18-hour layover a la Bourdain and our trip was in late December 2011, so “several” was actually about 8 years ago. My, how time flies.
We shared a seafood pajeon (savory pancake) which I reported that was not as good as my mom’s.
Grilled Lobster Tail and what was billed as Scallops. Scallops shells were not like the signs at our gas stations back home. Looked like giant mussels. I’d seen them before, but have not tried, yet.
It’s ddukbokki (I tried to spell it the way it’s pronounced). It’s one of my favorites as well. My mom used to tell me that kids would get it after school from vendors who are waiting for school to get out. It’s definitely a treat. Kinda like the ice cream truck here in the States. Only WAY better.
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Ddeokbokki, or Tteokbokki. The most popular street snack. There are several sizes, I prefer the small ones.
I’d seen the rice cakes in numerous Korean food videos and read mention of them. The name is just so darn hard for me to wrap my tongue and brain around. Must concentrate.
The flavor actually stirs up a sensory memory. May be like the the spaghetti that a Chinatown grocery store dishes out for a dime, on my walk to Chinese school. SHUDDER
Walked by a herd of youngsters (Hey, get off my f’n lawn!!) milling in from of a not yet opened store at 10am. Some had apparently camped out overnight. Apple store? No, ADIDAS!!! sigh
Funny thing happened en route to our noodles. Sidetracked by a lady with a glorious Pork Offal Soup. Her Blood Sausage was velvety and much more tender than they have right to be.
Kimchee, Chile, Garlic and Tiny Fish for breakfast? Yes. To all. So hearty and comforting.
Loving these posts. I have a ton of recs for Busan if you need any. Lived there for three months and my wife is from Seoul (but prefers to eat in Busan).
Most are floor-sitting spots tho…
You were curious about eating sea pinapples, well Busan is full of them. Once is quite enough for me. The exterior is like hard plastic, I didn’t eat it.
We will definitely eat more than our share of seafood starting tomorrow when we leave for Busan. My wife and her brother are BIG Eaters, and I’m not too far behind.
Just passed these very healthy Squid and Sea Pineapples on the way back to the hotel. We had planned to go Wagyu BBQ tonight, but that Squid is calling me.
Worse comes to worse, I’ll have to wait until Busan tomorrow to sate my sashimi craving.
oops.
thanks.
