mary eats

What timing! As I prepare for an extended break from the ROK I run across this: The Seoul Food Guide.

Only a couple months old, the Seoul Food Guide is a break away from the Big Seoul Sister blog, and here you’ll find restaurant reviews from joints all over the city. Happy eats!

In honor of Zen Kimchi and The Amateur Gourmet, I humbly present my take on the comic book post. enjoy

After a particularly grueling shoe shopping expedition at Doota, C, Kevin’s school chum visiting from Japan, and I sat down at one of Dongdaemun’s many pojangmachas for a snack.

I would like to say that we were mislead. The ajuma keep calling out “chi-ken, chi-ken.” So we took the bait and walked over. At her grill, sliced cabbage, noodles, and onions sat in a spicy heap. I asked.

“Igyoboya?”

“Gobchang bbokeum, pork, very delicous-ie.”

It was pork alright. Rubbery, chewy, medicinally cold pork intestines. In texture they resembled a mixture between calamari (though not nearly as tender) and a wood ear mushroom.

Not very delicious. Especially after having read Wikipedia’s warning concerning chitterlings.

“Care must be taken when preparing chitterlings, due to the high possibility of disease being spread with chitterlings which have not been cleaned or cooked properly. These diseases/bacteria include Yersinia enterocolitica as well as Salmonella. Chitterlings must be soaked and rinsed thoroughly in several different cycles of cool water, and repeatedly picked clean by hand, removing extra fat and specks of faecal matter. The chitterlings are then boiled and simmered until tender.”

In fairness to a pig’s small intestine, the overall quality of the meal was poor. The ddokboggie was too chewy and the kimchi pancake too oily. So not the best place to introduce a former vegetarian to the delicacy known as chitterlings.

Intestines play sizeable role in Korean cuisine and one preparation that I would be interested in trying is Makchang, a samgyeopal like dish of seasoned sliced large pork intestines grilled and served with lettuce, garlic, and ssamjang. Says Wikipedia, this dish is popular around Deagu (can anyone verify that) Other intestine showcases include Yanggopchang-gui, grilled beef tripe and intestines. Naejangtang, beef tripe and intestine soup. Gobchang Jangol, intestines hot pot with mushrooms and other veggies, among others

Zen Kimchi also recounts his experience with Gobchang here

Japanese Television and Youtube present….

Found at Emart, Vegetarian Ramyeon.

That’s right, not only is this baby sans meat but MSG free, and for the one two well-being punch the noodles are enhanced with antioxidant rich green tea and spinach.

700 won.

Back a month or so ago, I told you all that I would be updating of the first edition of the LUXE Guide Seoul.

Well, it’s finished and out! This Friday I arrived at work to find five newly pressed babies on my desk.

Working on the guide was exhilarating and simultaneously tiring. After all this I’ll think twice before cursing out my lonely planet for a wrong direction or phone number. My job was to walk through the shopping itineraries (half the guide) and double check that shops still existed, or were worth shopping in, and that phone numbers and directions were correct. Since LUXE doesn’t include maps, noting lefts and rights, around the bends and up over the hills are essential. Everything had to be correct. Which usually translated to me walking and re-walking the routes making sure I had it all down. At one point I resorted to taping the walk with my camera.

But blood, sweat and tears, wait. That’s not very luxe like. I’ll start again.

But martinis, manicures and suede loafers, it’s finished. Ready for you or anyone you know traveling to Seoul in need of a little luxury.

Seeing your name in print never gets old. They added the luscious part.

Friday my review of the Italian restaurant Buona Sera, in Dosan Park, ran in the Korea Times. You can read it here.

Buona Sera is white table cloth dining, and not just because there are white tablecloths. No. Buona Sera brings to the table quality seasonal produce and a chef with a sense of adventure and duty to his culinary traditions. Buona Sera would easily be a contender in NYC, London, Melbourne, or Hong Kong.

Millefoglie di cracker agli scampie baccala mantecato (or Savory Cracker with Fish Paste and Minced Fresh Shrimp)

Lunch sets start at 18,000 won (two courses plus VAT) making a trip to Buona Sera an occasion restaurant, but what an occasion restaurant it is.

Ciambella di bigne’ ai pistacchi Siciliani (or Pistachio Creamed Filled Bigne)

Mr. Pizza is a popular pizza delivery/eat-in chain in Korea. Their pies aren’t anything special, but aren’t bad. What does draw me to them over the others, is, however, their slogan “Made for Women.”

“Made for Women.” What does that mean, exactly? Their ads don’t give much away. Just a picture of the mega popular Korean actress Moon Geun-yeong showing off her mega dimples.

At least Secret Antiperspirant told you that it why with their 1980’s commercial slogan “was strong enough for a man, but pH balanced for a woman.” But Mr. Pizza leaves us hanging. Why is it made for women? Does it contain a high number of vitamins and minerals essential for women’s well being? Or maybe extra calcium to prevent osteoporosis? Or better yet, a natural birth control?

No. Thanks to an English menu we got the skinny.

Oh, Mr. Pizza is made for women because it’s 100% fresh, and 100% Chewy, and 100% Wholesome. Ah, and after reading the poll, we discovered the fact that Mr. Pizza “was voted as favorite pizza by college girls.” So do men not want A wholesome, fresh, and chewy pizza too?

Too bad. I was hoping there was more to this whole “Made for Women” thing. Like seeing Kevin develop a pair of breasts after downing a slice.

“It took me over five years to write,” Martha Stewart said of her new book Martha Stewart’s Home Keeping Handbook: The Essential Guide to Caring for Everything in Your Home, which I DESPRATELY WANT FOR CHRISTMAS, KEVIN, MOM, DAD, AND JAMIE ($27 on Amazon!). At the time, I couldn’t help but think, “really? Five years? Come on. Seriously?”

But after working tirelessly on this post for over a month, I get it.

In wanting to get everything perfect for you, my dear readers, this has been my longest working post known to date. I’ve gone through countless edits, making sure both English and Korean spellings are correct (we all know I have problems with that), and descriptions are clear and concise. It didn’t take me five years, but yowza! I feel ya Martha!

Please enjoy.

Korea’s Kimbap restaurants, much like North American diners, provide customers with simple pleasures. You won’t find truck drivers fiddling with a word search over a slice of cherry pie, or tired waitresses refilling bottomless cups of coffee. What you fill find, however is a constant menu, full of cheap Korean comfort food, deliciously satisfying on the rainiest of afternoons, latest of nights or most horrid of hangovers- damn you soju.

Kimbap Nara, 김밥나라

Menus are always in Korean. At the orange facade joints (Kimbap Nara or KimBap Chungguk) check off your order on a paper menu like the one pictured below. White facade restaurants ( Kim Ga Nae) are “well being”-ish kimbap diners, and simply have the menu on the wall. The ajuma or ajushi will verbally take your order.

Here I have roughly translated a kimbap Nara Menu. Many of these restaurants offer the exact same menus save for a couple of dishes, so study up or copy, paste, and keep it in your wallet. Items are numbered on the menu, you’ll find the corresponding number below with the Hangul, then English, the price (1,000 won = 1 USD), and a quick description. I’ve starred my favorites incase you’re in the market to order something new.

Before we start, a quick word on Kimbap.

Do not confuse kimbap with sushi. The two are not the same. Sure, they share similar ingredients, seaweed and rice, and yes, like the maki roll, kimbap is rolled. But do not expect the sweet vinegary essence of sushi rice or the harmonious fillings found in favorites like the California or Avocado roll. Kimbap, is more proletarian than sushi and more affordable.
Like a taco, kimbap has its standard fillings. Most of the orange or red signed Kimbap joints will use damuji (a yellow pickled sweet radish), processed ham, carrots, some greens, maybe spinach, and cooked egg. Kimbap restaurants with a white sign are known for being “well-being” and will include a host of other ingredients, from sliced pear or apple to fake crab and odang, processed fish.

김밥류, Kimbap Ryu, Kimbap selections
1. 원조 김밥, Wonjo Kimbap, Dollar Kimbap, 1,000 won: The most basic of Kimbap, fillings include damuji (a yellow pickled sweet radish), processed ham, carrots, some green, maybe spinach, and cooked egg.
2. 야채 김밥, Yachae Kimbap, Vegetable Kimbap, 2,000 won: Filled with various veggies including carrots and spinach. Little variation from Won-jo Kimbap.
3. 김치 김밥, Kimchi Kimbap, 2,000 won: Standard kimbap fillings (ham, eggs, carrots, radish) with a healthy dose of kimchi.
4. 계란말이 김밥, Kaeranmal Kimbap, Egg wrapped Kimbap 2,500 won: Standard fillings. The kimbap is rolled in a thin omelet, then sliced.
5. 치즈 김밥, Cheese Kimbap, 2,500 won: Standard kimbap fillings including a slice of processed cheese.

Tuna Kimbap 참치 김밥

8. 참치 김밥, Chamchi Kimbap, Tuna filled kimbap, 2,500won: Standard kimbap fillings including tuna, gagnib (sesame leaf), and mayonnaise.*
9. 소고기 김밥, Sogogi Kimbap, Beef filled kimbap, 2,500won: Standard kimbap fillings including beef.
10. 누드 김밥, Nude Kimbap, 2,500won: Standard kimbap fillings, like an inside out roll, with the seaweed on the inside and rice on the outside
12. 유부초밥, Youbu chobap, 3,000won: Like inari sushi. Some places heavily season the rice with vinegar.*

식사류, Shik Sa Ryu, Meal selections
13. 김치 덮밥, Kimchi dapbap, 3,500 won: Kimchi mixed rice.
14. 오징어 덮밥, Ojinga dapbap, 3,500 won: Spicy squid, carrot onion mélange served either atop, or next to a healthy serving of sticky rice.
15. 제육덮밥, Jaeyuk dapbap, 4,000 won: Stir fried pork, carrots, squash, and onions in spicy sauce served aside a plentiful helping of rice.*
16. 카레덮밥, Karae dapbap, 3,500 won: Rice topped with curry sauce, diced potatoes, carrots, and mystery meat.
17. 순두부 찌개, Sundubu Jjigae, 3,500 won: Sometimes fiery bubbling cauldron of soft tofu, freshly cracked egg (don’t stir if you’d like it hard boiled), chili peppers, inoki mushrooms, a couple clams, onions and deunjang (Korean miso) paste. Served with the ubiquitous fire retardant sticky rice.*

kimchi jjigae

18. 김치 찌개, Kimchi Jjigae, 3,500 won: Always fiery bubbling cauldron of kimchi, plenty of chili powder and raw chilies, onions and the odd mushroom in a pork broth. Served with the ubiquitous fire retardant sticky rice.*
19. 참치 김치 찌개, Kimchi Chamchi Jjigae, 4,000 won: See above with tinned tuna.
20. 된장 찌개Dwen-jang Jjigae, 3,500 won: Sometimes slightly spicy bubbling cauldron of dwen-jeong paste, inoki mushrooms, onions, clams and the odd cube of tofu. Korea’s answer chicken noodle soup. Served with the ubiquitous fire retardant sticky rice.
21. 갈비 탕, Galbi tang, 4,000 won: Short rib soup with garlic and green onion.
22. 소내장 탕, Sonaejang tang, 4,000 won: Soup made with Cow’s intestines.
23. 육개장, Yuk Jae Jang, 4,000 won: Beef and green onion soup in a fiery chili pepper broth.
24. 다슬기 해장국, Dasolgi haejangguk, 4,000 won: Hangover soup, usually made with ox bones and soybean paste. Featuring fresh water snails. Sometimes made with ox blood.
25. 우거지 해장국, Woogeogi haejangguk, 4,000 won: Hangover soup, usually made with ox bones and soybean paste. Featuring, as I understand it, shredded dried cabbage leaves. Sometimes made with ox blood.
26. 비빔밥, Bibimbap, 3,500 won: A staple. Rice in a silver bowl covered with various veg and gochujang (red chili paste). Carrots, mountain weeds, cucumbers, sprouts, etc.
27. 돌솥 비빔밥, Dolsot bibimbap, 4,000 won: See above served in a hot stone bowl and topped with a (usually) fried egg.*
28. 양푼 비빔밥, Yangpoon bibimbap, 4,000 won: Bibimbap served in a large metal bowl, usually serves two people.
29. 돈까스, Donkkasu, 4,000 won: A pork cutlet coated in egg and dredged in crunchy panko breadcrumbs and deep-fried. Usually served with a nest of shredded cabbage and rice.
30. 치즈 돈까스, Cheese donkkasu, 4,500 won: A pork cutlet graced with a slice of processed cheese, battered and coated in crunchy panko bread crumbs and fried.
31. 생선 까스, Sang sun kkasu, 4,000 won: Breaded and fried fish.
32. 오므라이스, Omu-ra-ee-su 3,500 won: Fried rice usually containing ham, carrots, Asian melon (zucchini-like) and a few peas for color wrapped in a thin omelet and smothered in ketchup. Good morning Korea!

Ddokbaegi bulgogi

33. 뚝배기 불고기, Ddokbaegi bulgogi 4,000 won: The king of protein at the diner. Stewing bulgogi meat amidst sweet potato (glass) noodles in a peppery savory broth. Served with sticky rice.*
34. 김치 고등어 뚝배기, Kimchi godeunga ddokbaegi, 4,000 won:
35. 짜장 덮밥, Jjajang dapbap, 3,000 won: Rice topped off with the sweet black bean sauce, jjajang.
36. 철판 치즈 덮밥, Chulpan chiju dupbap, 4,000 won: Fried rice topped with cheese, or chee ju, on a hot plate.
37. 철판 불고기 덮밥, Chulpan bulgogi dupbap, 4,000 won: Marinated beef atop rice on a hot plate.
38. 철판 김치 볶음밥, Chulpan kimchi bokkum bap, 4,000 won: Kimchi fried rice with peas, carrots and ham served on a hot fajita like plate.
39. 철판 새우 볶음밥, Chulpan saewoo bokkum bap, 4,000 won: Shrimp fried rice with diced carrots and peas served on a hot fajita like plate
40. 공기밥, Gong gi bap, 1,000 won: Plain white sticky rice
41. 호박 죽, Hobak Juk, 3,500 won: Thick pumpkin like porridge.
42. 단팥 죽, Danpat Juk, 3,500 won: A thick red bean porridge.
43. 소고기 야채 죽, Sogogi yache Juk, 4,000 won: Thick rice porridge with meat and various veggies.
44. 전복 죽, Junbok Juk, 5,000 won: Abalone and rice porridge.

분식류, Boon Shik Ryu, Foods made from flour ie noodles, dumplings, etc.
45. 떡볶이, Ddokboggie, 2,000 won: The street snack with chairs. Simmered rice cake (log form) swim in a sea of spicy pepper sauce augmented with odang (processed fish), cabbage, carrots, onions and leeks.
46. 라볶이, Raboggie, 2,500 won: See above and add Ramyeon noodles. Bonus!
47. 치즈떡볶이, Cheese ddokboggie, 2,500 won: See Ddokboggie, add cheese. Bonus!

Cheese Raboggie 치즈 라볶이

48. 치즈 라볶이, Cheese raboggie, 3,000 won: See Raboggie and add cheese. Double Bonus!*
49. 김치 만두, Kimchi Mandu, 2,000 won: Steamed kimchi, pork, noodle, leek, onion and chili-filled dumplings. Comes with a small side of soy sauce.*
50. 고기 만두, Gogimandu, 2,000 won: Meat, noodle, leek, onion and chili-filled dumplings. Comes with a small side of soy sauce.

Mul mandu 물 만두
51. 물 만두, Mulmandu, 2,500 won: Small dumplings filled with meat and green onions, served in a pond of steaming liquid. Comes with a small side of soy sauce.*

Ddok mandu guk 떡만두 국

52. 떡만두 국, Ddok mandu guk, 3,500 won: Sliced rice cakes, meat dumplings, egg, sliced green onion, melon (zucchini-like), and other veggies in a broth.*
53. 떡국, Ddokguk, 3,000 won: A dish traditionally served on the lunar New Year; sliced rice cakes, meat, and egg in a beef broth.
54. 만두국, Mandu guk, 3,500 won: Dumplings and veggies in broth.
55. 항아리 수제비, Hangari sujaebi, 7,000 won: Sujaebe, a vegetable and dumpling. soup served in a pot. Not sure what the exact difference between this and plain old sujaebe is except this is for two people.
56. 라면, Ramyeon, 2,000 won: Green onions and chili powder take cup of noodles to a new level.
57. 떡라면, Ddok ramyeon, 2,500 won: noodles and green onions with sliced rice cakes.*
58. 치즈 라면, Cheese ramyeon, 2,500 won: noodles and green onions topped with a slice of processed cheese. Sounds ill, but the melted cheese helps tone down the heat of the broth.
59. 만두 라면, Mandu ramyeon, 2,500 won: noodles and green onions with meat dumplings.

짬뽕 라면, Jjam bbong ramyeon,

60. 짬뽕 라면, Jjam bbong ramyeon, 2,500 won: Ramyeon served in a pot boasting clams, squid, and a few baby shrimp.
61. 바지락 칼국수, Bagirak kalguksu, 3,500 won: Hand cut thick noodles in an anchovy stock with short neck clams.*
62. 쫄면, jjol myeon, 3,000 won: Thick noodles with mixed with spicy sauce and various veggies like bean sprouts, cucumber, carrots and the like.
63. 스파게티, Supagaeti, 4,000 won: Spaghetti
64. 짜장면, Jjajangmyeon, 2,500 won: Wheat noodles topped with a sweet black bean sauce concealing some veggies, carrots, and meat-ham.
65. 나라우동, Nara Udong, 2,500 won: Thick and slippery wheat noodles in a binto (fish) broth with green onion and tofu skins.
66. 김치우동, Kimchi Udong, 3,000 won: Thick and slippery wheat noodles in a binto broth with a heap of kimchi.*
67. 해물 우동, Haemul Udong, 3,000 won: Thick and slippery wheat noodles in a binto broth with various seafood including clams and prawns, maybe a mussel or two.
68. 물냉면, Mul naengmyeon, 3,500 won: A sipcy soup of chewy buckwheat noodles in a cold broth generally topped with sliced cucumbers and a hard-boiled egg.*
69. 비빔 냉면, Bibim naengmyeon, 3,500 won: Thin white noodles and thinly sliced carrots, cabbage and cucumber in a fiery red sauce.
70. 잔치 국수, Janchi guksu, 3,500 won: Known as banquet noodles, or wheat noodles in an anchovy broth topped with sliced egg, meat, mushrooms and other vegetables. Traditionally served at large banquets.

Bibim guksu in the background, Kongguksu in the foreground.

71. 비빔국수, Bibim guksu, 3,500 won: Wheat noodles mixed with various sliced veggies and meat in a spicy sauce.*
72. 콩국수, Kong guksu, 3,500 won: Thick wheat noodles in a cold soy milk broth usually topped with sliced cucumbers. Usually eaten in summer.

From Ines Cho and the team at the JoongAng Daily, what to shop for when in Korea. From Ginseng to hand phones, and heating systems, where and what to buy. Do you agree?

Tea recipes from the Korea Times that help fight winter colds. Info on the jujube, persimmon, pears, citron, and more.

From the new Korean Food blog My Korean Kitchen, an easy photo step by step recipe for dakgalbi, I made it last week and it was perfect. Recipes all those Korean dishes you’ve been meaning to make at home.

Is it a candy or a mint?

I’m not sure, but I am sure of my new addiction to Anytime, a tri-layered mint-dy from lotte. They feel more like hard candy in size, and are incredibly sugary, yet my mouth feels minty fresh after crunching my way through the bag. Of the two flavores, lemon and mint, the mint is far superior thanks to a hint of vanilla.
700 won for a box at your local mini-mart.

Finally, after four years in Seoul, Kevin and I took a tour of one, just one of Seoul’s umpteen palaces.

This post is not food related, my first non-food related post I think, unless you would like me to go into detail concerning the mocha and vanilla latte Kevin and I downed before the tour. They were from coffee bean, and delicious. Very creamy. How is that? Does coffee bean only use whole milk? Way better than Starbucks, but I don’t like their cappuccinos: too big and not enough foam.

Ok, I am getting off track. I’m no Erin Wigger or Max Watson, but enjoy the photos, and don’t wait four years to check out Seoul’s cultural sights.

Changdeokgung palace is regarded as Seoul’s most photogenic palace, boasting acres of wooded gardens and a pond pavilion. Fall is the most opportune time to visit as the changing leaves breath life into the ghostly empty buildings.

After Korea gained independence from Japan, government offices occupied all of Seoul’s palaces. The last crown prince of the Korea, Euimin, who at the age of 10 was taken to Japan where he was later forced to marry the Japanese princess Nashimotonomiya Masako. They returned to Korea in November of 1963 to reside at Changdeokgung, though he and his family were sequestered in the vacant concubine quarters. He died seven years later.

This palace in particular is a UNESCO heritage site and you can only enter through a guided tour. English guided tours take place daily (Except Mondays) at 11:30a.m, 1:30p.m, and 3:30p.m. Tickets are 3,000 won. Changdeokgung Palace is located near Anguk Station, line 3, exit 3.

Asia’s department store basement’s boasts treasures of the culinary kinds. Generally the basement houses a grocery store, and a plethora of restaurant kiosks pushing the city’s biggest culinary trends. Bites are generally small, and the feeling of wandering through crowds of hungry locals eagerly waiting (or pushing) to get their hands on an Indian tandoori chicken wrap or a Chinese steamed bun is not unlike attending a culinary fair like The Bite of Seattle or the Taste of so and so. It is just that this happens everyday. Lunchtime and weekends prove the most tiring on one’s patience, but if you find yourself with a couple of hours during the workday here’s what on offer at Seoul’s most chic department store, the Myeong-dong Shinsagae.

Crepe wraps: Here a thin flavorless crape is wrapped around fillings that range from tuna salad (my pick) to American hotdogs and processed cheese. Cheap.

Korean Juk or soup. Juk is generally made from one ingredient, blended with glutinous rice to create a thick creamy soup. Not necessarily savory, but a gentle comfort on cold days or when a hangover looms.

From Japan we get Yakitori. Various cuts of chicken, knuckles, hearts, livers, breasts, sometimes alternated with sliced leek, brushed with tare sauce a sweet sauce made from soy sauce, sugar, mirin, sake and sugar. Cheap.

French pastries from Duchamp. Not cheap

Also from Europe, breads and pastries of all kinds. Koreans are very innovative when it comes to breads. You’ll often find interesting combinations like green tea and cream cheese bread, or walnut and blueberry. Be warned that some small loaves (looking suspiciously like a hotdog bun) are piped with a sweet cream. Not awful mind you, but a surprise when you are only expecting a dinner roll.

From Korea: rice triangles. Koreans do a fine job combining rice, nuts, and seasonings, forming them into hefty triangles and wrapping them with seasoned seaweed. Inari sushi wrappers (aged and seasoned tofu skin) is also treated to rice and other fillings like corn, vegetables, and tuna. Cheap.

Fry stand. Cutlets, croquettes, corndogs, anything breaded goes into the fryer. Fish, pork, veggies and more.

India gives us a hot tandoori chicken wrap and a cold spicy shrimp wrap. Cool down with a sweet fruit lassi made from yogurt.

China greets with golden Peking duck. Platters of already sliced duck sit ready to go.

The biggest hit of the culinary tour, drawing lines of up to 20 people is the humbao, steamed bun, You’ll need two hands to polish off one of the kimchi or noodle and pork filled bun. Cheap.

From The New York Times Style Magazine….

Gastronomista / (gas trän ome sta) / n. / a savvy woman who turns blogging about what she ate last night into a mini-industry, e.g., ’ “Did you hear about the latest gastronomista book deal? She’s even doing a lingerie line, Mise en Place”; a woman for whom knowledge of chefs and restaurants is the equivalent of the new Marc Jacobs bag: ’ “She’s such a gastronomista, she ate at Morandi, Cafe Cluny and the Waverly Inn during the soft openings.”

Maybe I should start refering to myself in the thrid person as the Gastronomista.

November 11th, day of the peppero is coming!

Halloween came and went and with it a fantastic Veuve Clicquot party at the stunning Naos Nova.

What turned out to be a GQ party had a host of media types milling about the room, dressed in “black, head to toe, incognito” (dress code), champagne glass in hand. Included were Ines Cho from the JoongAng Daily, and Benjamin Hwang from OnStyle’s hit show, What Women Want. Not to mention various other actors I don’t know.

Usually after such copious amounts of complimentary champagne I can be found dancing, singing or performing a combination of two, solo on the dance floor. However not to embarrass our date, Kevin and I were content to sit on our geometric stools nibbling on figs wrapped in prosciutto.

If you haven’t been to Naos Nova, do check it out. The more than modern glass and concrete bar has been featured in Wall Paper magazine and oozes with industrial sexiness- if that’s possible.

Naos Nova
Near the Hilton on Namsan road.
02 754-2203

In all my years living in Seoul, I am amazed that I, Mary cheesyddokboggie Crowe could have missed something to interigal to the city’s dining scene, so essential to my culinary wellbeing, and something so, spicy, as Seoul’s Ddokboggie Town.

Yes, that is right. The spicy rice cake, leek and sliced odang snack, a favorite of children, adults, and me, covets an street of Seoul, chock-a-block with restaurants specializing in the fiery mess.

How I could have missed this, I don’t know. A mere few subway stops from my home, lies the key to my ever-expanding waistline. Saturday Kevin and I hit ddokboggie town just before the after school rush, taking in 50 years of ddokboggie history at Mabongnim Halmoni Ddokboggie (Grandmother’s Ddokboggie) Since 1953 grandma has been serving up paella like dishes of slender ddok logs, sliced green onion, thinly sliced fish cakes, ramyeon, chewy noodles, hard boiled eggs and fried mandu (which I think was fried in 1953) in a sweet spicy sauce. Cooked at the table while you wait, it is, as my husband put it, “a lesson in patience management.”

The ddokboggie in its raw form

Cooking the ddokboggie

almost ready
Try as we did, we couldn’t finish.

Disgraced by waif 20 something girls, and children who polished their dish clean, Kevin and I left Mabongnim Halmoni Ddokboggie with hands around our bellies, heads hanging low. We’ll gett’em next time.

Mabongnim Halmoni Ddokboggie
Seoul, Korea
Subway: Sindang Station, exit 8. Walk two blocks and turn right. Look for the restaurant with the larger than life-sized picture of Grandma on it.
Phone: 02 2232-8930
Hours: 8:00a.m.-1:00a.m. Weekdays –2:00a.m.weekends (Friday and Saturday)
Prices:$ Ddokboggie for two 8,000 won
Atmosphere: Fluorescent lights, stool seating, paper napkins.

My review of Pho Saigon, a Pho restaurant in Itaewon runs today in the Korea Times. You can read it here.

Pho restaurants are a big dining trend in Seoul. Koreans are noodle fans, however authenticity isn’t necessarily observed.

What the pho?

To start, lemons replace limes; integral fragrant herbs like that basil and cilantro are missing. I am willing to bet that the broth is not made from scratch with star anise and other spices. C’est la vie. It is still good, just don’t come with fond memories of your backpacker’s holiday in Viet Nam where all you did was slurp noodles by the roadside.

Another Korean twist is the addition of the pickled radish damuji in the fresh spring rolls, a surprise that did not delight. Other fusion ingredients would include imitation crab and pineapple. eh.

Happily the Vietnamese Coffee remains as rich and syrupy as a melted coffee ice-pop (candy, icicle).

Vegetarians, you can do ok here. The soup is off, but in its place take in the Mixed rice noodles (bibim noodles). A preasent mix of freshly cut veggies and noodles lighlty dressed with sesame oil. Spicy red sauce arrives on the side.

So when all these problems plague every pho restaurant in town how do you pick? The two major chains, Pho Bay and Pho Bao are fine, a touch sterile, paper place mats, servers running about the restaurant. Pho Saigon is within walking distance from my house, and is run by a lovely couple. I’m thinking of imparting some guerilla consulting next time I dine. I will simple leave, in my place, a bag of limes and cilantro and a note saying, “try this please”.

Pho Saigon
Opposite the Capital Hotel
Open Mon-Sat 11:30-10:00pm