Sashimi Course at OK2 Kitchen Seoul, Korea People ask me which restaurants do you go back to. Well, I go back to OK2 Kitchen- not because I like the place, but because I have to make sure that they are maintaining quality. I have to check out this restaurant over and over again because it's a service that I provide to the public- I need to make sure that other people that go to the restaurant have the proper experience. The other night I went with my friend Suji because I wanted to make sure that her food was going to be as good as mine. Yeah...that's why I have to keep going back to OK2 Kitchen^^ Dan

Now, I'm kinda worried that I might have over-promoted this restaurant. It doesn't matter because it's just that good. Here is my article on the Seoul Tourism Website: http://english.visitseoul.net/visit2007en/aboutseoul/whyseoul/whyseoul.jsp?cid=46&sid=2463 . Be kind and leave a comment on their website (on the above link), because they support my website and my eating addiction. Dan      OK2 Kitchen near Itaewon Station is more than just “O.K.” Originally, I thought the name was play on the Korean name for traditional house: Hanok, because the restaurant is set in a Korean traditional house. But after speaking to the owner, I learned it was named after his wife: Jeong-mi Oh.      Jeong-mi Oh, or known as Jaime Oh, is a famous food stylist, teacher, artist, and curator. Her works have been displayed around the world. Most recently she was the curator of the Gwangju Biennale. The owner is chef Susumu Yonaguni of the ...

The last Seoul Eats Meet-up was a great success and we had 7 people come out to OK2 Kitchen for a special menu made by Chef Susumu and his staff. The special grand prix menu with 3 bottles of wine cost only 77,000 per person. Everyone said it was too cheap for the excellent cuisine we enjoyed that evening. Thank you so much OK2 Kitchen for the great meal. For those interested in coming to the next Seoul Eats Meet-up join the facebook page by clicking this link. Menu Amuse Bouche: Fried anago & Foie Gras Ball Appetizer: Seafood Plate: Yellow Tail, Snapper Ceviche, Razor Clam, Herring, Oyster Polenta Cake with arugula Salad with Truffle Oil Close-up of the Polenta Cake Parmesan Gelato with Home made Hame with grissini Pasta Course: Potato Gnocchi with Amatriciana Sommelier

Sashimi Platter at O Kitchen Tuna Platter (Susumu's Dinner) Susumu Yongari Whenever I go to O Kitchen I feel like I am visiting old friends. Well, the friends that I would really like to meet: artistic foodies that can hold a decent conversation while juggling knives. This is a place I have visited extensively and so I will let the photos tell the story. The menu during my last visit was: /An Assorted Sashimi Platter that included Sea squirt, halibut, mackerel, snapper and more /A Polenta Cake with soft boiled quail egg /Persimmon Sorbet /A Pastrami cold plate with garden grown carrots /Seafood Pasta with Ugly Ravioli /Chicken Four Ways /Fish Four Ways /Dessert Platter that included Persimmon Pie, Beet dessert topped with Gorgonzola Ice Cream and Chocolate Souffle with mint cream /Coffee Garden Grown Carrot Fish Four Ways Chicken Four ways Dessert Chocolate with Espresso Ice Cream and Mint Cream Beet Souffle with Gorgonz...

OK2 Kitchen I think you all know my love of Susumu and OK2 Kitchen. If not you can see all my posts on the restaurant here:  http://www.seouleats.com/search?q=ok2+kitchen . Lunch was wonderful as usual. Dan Chamwei Gazpacho Duck Pastrami Pasta with Fresh Mozzerella Salted Caramel Pudding and Ginseng Flan and Granita

I feel like I am Susumu's publicist from OK2 Kitchen, but I do it out of love instead of money. The other day someone asked me for a great restaurant that has excellent food but is value for money. I usually recommend OK2 Kitchen for the food is good, the service is friendly, and the skilled chefs make excellent cuisine using fresh ingredients. Susumu doesn't need a publicist. His food speaks for him. Here is some food I had during my last visit: a Poached Duck Egg and truffle salad and a dessert plate. (Susumu was kind enough to send over some ice cream and chocolate souffle as service. Thanks.) Here is a review I wrote a while back: http://www.seouleats.com/2009/11/slow-food-at-ok2-kitchen-review-up-on.html

You all know that I'm a fan of this restaurant. I really believe in Chef Susumu Yonaguni's food philosophy. He grows and makes most of his ingredients (he has a farm outside of the city where he grows his herbs and vegetables, he smokes his own salmon and duck pastrami, etc.) Susumu is a advocate for true food and, luckily, he is passing these lessons down to his students. On next Thursday, April 1st at 7:30 PM, Seoul Eats will have the next meet-up at OK2 Kitchen in Itaewon. The chef will prepare a 7 course grand prix menu using the best ingredients available on that day (Susumu prepares food according to the freshest ingredients he can get from the markets and his farm). The price for this meal will be 65,000 (including VAT) per person. If you would like wine paired with your meal (you will get 3 glasses of wine chosen by Sommelier Ahn Sung-hwan) it will be 77,000. Reservations are recommended and you can secure your spot by sending payment in advance to: Bank: 외환은행 KE...

Lunch Course for Nov. 20th was A Seafood plate, Toscana Bean Soup, Homemade Duck Pastrami, Orecchietto with homemade sausage, Dessert, Coffee. The B course is 35,000 (With Wagyu Steak) and A course is 20,000. The Seafood plate had a Red Snapper cerviche, Yellowfish Tartar and a perfect piece of mackerel. The lime kick on the Red Snapper was exceptional and changed the texture of the fix to give it a bit of bite. The Yellowfish tartar was almost beefy and the herbs added nice accents. I love Mackerel and you can see how well they cut it. It's an oily fish, so if it has a strong scent, you know it's not fresh. This one smelled and tasted like the sea. The Toscana Bean soup was rich and warming, especially in the Fall. The Duck Pastrami was smoked and had cumin on the outside. The sugared pecans were a bit too much, but the duck was exceptional. The Orechietto (little ears) with homemade sausage was a great, energizing lunch dish. The sausage was sagey and peppery like it sh...

The OK Kitchen is a play on the Korean word, Hanok, which means traditional house. My friend Paul Ajossi calls this place the "best lunch set in Itaewon." You can see his take on this restaurant here. The interior is a stylized mix of modern and old. I went on a Saturday and for lunch and the set included  Sweet Pumpkin and Gnocchi soup, Salmon two ways, Parmesan Flan (they ran out of the fig tartin), Australian Wagyu steak, dessert, and coffee. My friend had the Casareccia with Mushroom and cream. My meal cost 35,000 won, while hers only cost 20,000. The meal starts out with some homemade foccaccia, tortilla, and cornbread. The cornbread is scrumptious. Here is the pumpkin soup. In the center is the cloud-like gnocchi that melts in your mouth. The salmon course (BTW, they smoke their own salmon) had one flavored with orange and capers, while the other had grapefruit sorbet. Delicious. This Parmesan Flan was a substitute, but wow was it brilliant. the crisp, savory tast...