Uiseong Black Garlic Pastry Ham and Cheese and Black Garlic in Korea doesn't need to be refridgerated Where' the Black Garlic? It tasted like ketchup with spam with garlic powder. Damn...fell for the marketing.

POSTCARDS FROM THE WORLD a fundraising event by New York City photographer Bremelin Romero Once underprivileged children are given the basic needs of education, health care and love, they believe that there are no limits to their potential. "Los Niños de Cristo" orphanage funded by Mr. Charles Decker foundation since 2005 was created to help destitute children in La Romana, Dominican Republic. This safe haven for children provides all the basic needs. It also helps children discover the infinite possibilities in life by reaching their full potential. However,after the catastrophic events in Haiti,the orphanage welcomed several children from neighboring Haiti. The needs have mounted. The children need support,financial support. Together,NewYork Photographer Bremelin Romero and Harpist Kihwa Lee have joined their talents and have scheduled a fundraiserevent. Come to Tea for Two to pledge your support to the children from "Los Niños de Cristo" orphanage. Fun...

Let's try something new today: a Photoblog post, but first a quick word. NOA is a cute little bistro run by a couple of foodie chefs. I never really see it very busy (it might have to do with location) but the food is good and I like the effort the crew is making to make things work. I would definitely go back. noa: nice interior A little appetizer the chef cooked up since we were the first (and only customers on this Sunday morning). It was tart, spicy, greasy and crispy. Oh, and vegetably- quite good. A Mad Foodie Designed the place! The Lamp Shades are recipes Gargonzola Pizza with honey dipping sauce. The thin crust was homemade and crispy. I wish they put a tad less cheese for it took away from the wonderful crust. I got the massive English Breakfast. It was big and absolutely ordinary, but that's what I expected. I wanted protein and grease because I had a rough night the night before. Oh, and it was cheap (10,000 won!!!) Yes, there are tomatoes. T...

Grandmother's Knife-cut Noodles In the back alley of Jongno 3-ga, you'll find Grandmother's Knife-cut noodles. The place has been around for 20 years and it's the most popular knife-cut noodle shop in the area- which is surprising because it looks like a dump. It looks like a shanty with seats, but maybe that's because they have been so busy for so long that they haven't had a chance to fix it up. Even though it looks like a shanty, the place is McDonald's efficient. Once you sit, your order is taken and 2 minutes later you have a piping hot bowl of noodle soup. They have only two things on the menu: Knife cut noodles or Knife Cut Noodles with dumplings (sujebi) (In the summer they have Kongguksu: Chilled Soybean Milk Noodle Soup.) Everything costs 4,000 won (about $3.50) for a humongoid bowl of noodley goodness. Kimchi is included. Name: Halmoni Calguksu Phone Number: ??? Website: ??? Directions: It's on the back streets of Jongno. If you ...

Le Saigon in Haebangchon. Picture by Paul Ajossi During the summers I crave raw vegetables and a big, leafy, crispy salad. Sure, I love Korean vegetable side dishes, but they are normally blanched and salted and seasoned with garlic and sesame oil. These days I have been working til very late most days so I haven't been able to get to the market to get vegetables to make my own dinner. The place that has been my savor these days has been Le Saigon in Haebangchon. This place is not very far from my home and the bus drops me off pretty close to it. Besides convenience, I truly appreciate the quality of the food. I often go and get Banh Mi Sandwich or the rice vermicelli noodle bowl. The Pho is delightful as well as the broth is very rich and it doesn't taste like raw bones boiled for several hours. Oh! and they serve cilantro with the soup (which I feel is a necessity). The crew working there seem to have done their research for the noodles for the noodles are not the ubiq...

I was walking past one of my favorite Kebap places in Seoul and I noticed they had gutted the entire place. I hope they are remodeling because I really loved that place. It has been my guilty pleasure for years. Me sad. I think I'll have to call the manager and ask what's going on.

I love Gupnae Chicken because it is: 1. BBQ'd and not battered and fried. 2. The spicy sauce is awesome and not some sugared down nasty stuff that tastes like McDonald's Sweet and Sour sauce. 3. It comes with the white Korean radish (I know every place does and I love them.) 4. Girl's Generation does the commercials and you get a poster from one of the lovely's when you order the chicken. 5. They deliver to my house. 6. It's not expensive (14,000). 7. It's delicious. Gupnae Chicken in Haebangchon 02-792-9291 (I assume they must be able to take orders in English, but I haven't tried it.)

I'm in Korea for vacation, where are the best restaurants to eat at??? This is a question I get asked all the time and although I try to personally answer each e-mail, I feel that there are many lists on my website that answer this question. I wanted to make a comprehensive post about this question. Here are my lists of recommendations: Here's a big list and tips: http://www.seouleats.com/2009/09/restaurant-recommendations-and-tips-for.html Here's a list of just BBQ restaurants: http://www.seouleats.com/2009/11/korean-barbecue-restaurant.html This is for summer: http://www.seouleats.com/2008/07/seoul-eats-ways-to-chillax-in-seoul.html And a list for adoptees: http://www.seouleats.com/2009/07/welcome-goal-adoptees-to-land-of-kimchi.html You should also check out Sandang: http://www.seouleats.com/search?q=sandang And Wooriga: http://www.seouleats.com/2009/10/seasonal-reflections-chef-jeong-hyun.html Jungshikdang http://www.seouleats.com/search?q=jung+...

Durga in Seoul: Indian Food Durga and Everest are my go-to places for Indian Food. Ironically, they're not Indian, but Nepalese. Sure there are "authentic" Indian places in the city, but I often feel the flavors there are a bit muddy. Also, overdosing on Indian Buffet is a sure way to make the food less special- especially since when I was a poor college student that's what my friends and I often did. The food at Durga is bright, hearty, and flavorful. The bread seems to be always right out of the oven. You can tell a good naan, if it tears right away and leaves a trail of steam. I have been disappointed by naan in the past to know when the bread is right out of the oven and one that's right out of the microwave (microwaved naan is closer to rubber than bread). I got the Palak and a Spinach Curry (I can't remember which one, but I think it was the Malai Kofta). Both were excellent and we had to order more naan to sop up all the delicious sauce. Tomato ...

Hi everyone, I hope you are doing well on this dreary day (It's raining for the umpteenth day in Seoul...) I wanted to share with you a story that I wrote for Koreataste.org. The website is an in-depth website into Korean food. It has great columns and pictures. The story I wrote for the site was on Korean Street-Cart Food. Here it is. Enjoy, Dan Korean Street food epitomizes Korea. It is mobile. It is fast. It is fun. And the people who make it embody the “Spirit of the Hungry”: the never say die attitude to survive in a competitive society. You’ll see these carts everywhere and they are all working hard to feed a nation of taste-obsessed citizens. One tiny cart that is only the size of a golf cart holds a plethora of tasty tidbits. You have lightly battered fried sweet potato, fried cuttlefish, fried dumplings, fried shrimp, battered and fried hotdogs, and vegetable fritters. The fried hotdogs look similar to ones that you might find on Coney Island. A wiener is impaled w...

For real yo! This is hilarious! Kudos to Korea.net. Thx.

Hana: Japanese Cuisine from New York I have been tricked by sushi restaurants in the past in Korea. The Korean idea of sushi seems to be big rice bombs doused in mayonnaise and other sweet sauces. This isn't something common just to Korea, but something I saw in Malaysia and some places in Japan as well. I think it has to do with the reverence for rice in Korea. Rice is the most important part of the meal and the sushi reflects that. Now the one place that I found that I could get the simplicity of sushi I was searching for was at Hana (하나) Restaurant over by Seoul National University. Salmon Avocado Salad at Hana We started out with a Salmon and Avocado Sushi and it was exactly what was stated. It was chunks of Salmon tossed with ripe avocado and balanced with green onions and a tart sauce. Oh, and the popping sensation of tiny fish eggs made this dish exactly like I have eaten in NYC. Spicy Tuna Roll at Hana The Spicy Tuna Rolls were nice with the crunch of cucumb...

I'm sitting in my office drinking out of my classic Maxim cup. Funny, but Maxim backwards is Mixam, hahaha.

PRESS RELEASE Seoul Gourmet 2010: Seoul Welcomes the World’s Master Chefs Creating an International Culinary Event August 5th 2010 - Seoul, South Korea - Experience an eclectic mix of Korean and international cuisine at Seoul Gourmet 2010 to be held from Sunday September 26th to Thursday September 30th 2010. Now in its second year, the event’s celebrity line-up will feature master chefs from Michelin* star-rated restaurants such as Michel Troisgros (France), Jordi Roca (Spain), Carlo Cracco (Italy) and Sang-Hoon Degeimbre (Belgium) among many others. Organized by the Dreamville Entertainment and Seoul Tourism Organization , Seoul Gourmet 2010 will also host a master pâtissier, a ‘molecular food scientist’ as well as prominent Korean chefs. Market tours, the Korean Food Academy, Star Chef Dinners, Master Cooking Classes, and a Gala Dinner staring all participating chefs are among some of the exclusive events planned for the festival. The celebrated chef line-up includes: Mich...

The Elusive Mulberry While visiting a friend in Suncheon this weekend, I crossed paths with the elusive Korean mulberry. Thinking back to previous mulberry experiences (really lack thereof), I can only recall singing about such fruits rather than eating them. "Here we go 'round the mulberry bush," remained a staple of daycare sing-alongs, and until recently, I didn't even know what a mulberry looked like. Upon a first glance, the mulberry (오디 in Korean) vaguely resembles a raspberry. Upon further inspection, however, the mulberry is longer in shape and darker in appearance. The taste, too, is less sweet than that of most fruit. Unfortunately, this taste has been erroneously labeled "bland"- what a misconception. My first taste of mulberries remind me of my first bites of dark chocolate, or sips of coffee, all of which seem wonderfully strange at first, but gradually became an acquired and sought after taste. Thankfully, mulberries will be in seas...

In Celebration of Korea's Independence Day, Google did a new front page. Pretty Awesome! Check it out now. http://www.google.com/ Dan

World Class Chefs: Jordi Roca, Michel Troisgros, Carlo Cracco, Sang-Hoon Degeimbre, Ken Hom, Fernando del Cerro, Luigi Biasetto, and Bruno Goussault will be coming to Seoul in September!!! Seoul is having a World Class Gourmet Dining Event in Seoul next month. Eight of the World's Top Chefs will be visiting Seoul to give presentations and to cook for the great city of Seoul. There will be culinary tours and market classes for those that would like to get hands on experience with Korean cuisine as well as Master Classes for invited master chefs (If you are a licensed Chef and would like to come to this, contact me and I can put you in touch with the people organizing this class). For those Gourmands that are looking for a world class dinner. The chefs will be cooking at luxury hotels around the city. Here's the schedule and venue: Right now details are scant on the prices and how to make reservations. But I assume that they will be up on the Seoul Gourmet Website soo...

Watch this video. It'll make your smile. The song is "Can't Change My Style" by the Drags Thanks Elyse

Job: Korean to English Translator Career Level: Experienced and have lived overseas (America, Europe, Australia, Canada) Job Status: Full-Time Degree Level: University Graduate. Experience of Korean food or Food and Nutrition Helpful Pay: 1,500,000 to 2,000,000 depending on experience Number of Positions: 2 Location: Seoul Starting Date: ASAP Company: O'ngo Food Communications www.ongofood.com Job Description: Translate Korean food names and descriptions into English Contact: Daniel Gray dan@ongofood.com O'ngo Food Communications is looking for a couple of Korean to English Translators to work on a Korean menu development project. The translated items will go into a dictionary of Korean food for the Korean Government. The goal of this project is translate different regional cuisines from around Korea into English to help promote Korean food overseas. The qualified persons should have a good grasp of written English and Korean. The persons should also have a genera...

Lord Sandwich. It's not even like the place is called "The Sandwich." It's got Lord as an honorific, and if that doesn't scream hoity-toity , then the design of the building will for sure leave you looking twice. Or at least staring hard. But let's take a gander in a bit. What makes a good sandwich lord sandwich? Is it the carefully thought out combination of greens, cold cuts, and cheese? The delicately spread ketchup, mayonnaise, or mustard? I mean, the combo list can go on forever. But ask yourself this, what's the staple for every good sandwich? Because no matter what goes inside any great 'wich, the first bite is always reminiscent of its bread. And of course the quality of the ingredients inside are important, but for me the bread can often make or break my entire day . So. Back to Lord Sandwich. After walking past it every day on my way into Sinchon, I met up there with my good friend, Gahyun, for lunch one day. We decided to sp...

Venture outdoors, and in moments, you will feel the heat. Such heat and humidity create conditions fit for damp clothes, sticky bodies, and worst of all, parched mouths. Such heat demands extra nourishment. For me, nourishment tends to come in a bowl or cone, and is likely dipped in chocolate. Koreans, however, try to “beat the heat with heat” with spices rather than sweets. Boyangshik are special foods prepared and eaten during the hottest 30-day period in the lunar calendar called sambok. This time period is also referred to as 복날, bok nal, which means the “dog days of summer.”  According to the lunar calendar, Sambok is marked by three days: chobok (beginning), jungbok (middle), and malbok (last).  This year, chobok was on July 20, junbok on July 30 and malbok was recently on August 9.  Sambok is rooted in Korea's agriculture. At one time, majority of Koreans were farmers, so families worked together to grow and harvest food. When it got too hot to work, Koreans wo...

The Oatmeal makes me laugh uncontrollably. Sure, he doesn't have the most normal kind of humor, but boy is he dementedly funny. Here is his comic on how the male angler fish gets completely screwed (poor male angler fish). ㅠㅠ Now Koreans eat female Angler fish all the time. It's called Agwi or agu (아귀/아구). This comic makes me reconsider eating that fish now. Dan

Watch it till the end. I have to commend McDonald's on their commitment to service! Via Gizmodo Melodi Dushane, 25, pulled up to a Toledo-area McDonald's at 6:30 a.m. on New Year's Day demanding McNuggets. Told of McDonald's breakfast-lunch barrier, Dushane tried to order a side of McWhoopAss instead. Here's the just-released crazy video.

Look Mom! I made my own Alcohol! Now I can save my money for books^^ Have you ever wanted to learn how to make Korean alcohol? The Susubori Academy is offering a series of mini-classes on the making and appreciation of Samyangju, a traditional Korean liquor. This alcohol is one of the basic building blocks of Korean alcohol and it can be used to then make Makgeolli and Cheongju. As part of their opening celebration, they are offering a special discount: Ten hours of class instruction for just 50,000 won. Dates & Hours (4 meetings in 2 weeks, 10 class hours total) Class (A) August 16, 18, 23, 25 2:00 – 4:30 pm Class (B) August 16, 18, 23, 25 7:00 – 9:30 pm Class (C) August 17, 19, 24, 26 2:00 – 4:30 pm Class (D) August 17, 19, 24, 26 7:00 – 9:30 pm PROGRAM 1st Class Making the alcohol foundation 2nd Class 1st fermentation process 3rd Class 2nd fermentation process 4th Class Alcohol Tasting & small party Maximum Class size: 20 PRICE: 50,000 won you can pay ...