Seoul Eats

Trying to eat healthier. Here is some tea from Cha Sarang in Insadong. Eat more apples! This one from daegu was the size of Mike Tyson's fist. I love sundubu and this is from a little place over by Anguk Station exit 2. The name of the place is Jedong Sundubu. cookies from Singapore from a food tour guest.

Too many good food weeks are starting to catch with me. Sure, I have a bit of a weight issue but it is starting to become a lower back issue. All this sitting at a computer is starting to cause me lower back problems. My doctor also told me that I slouch like a crane and I lean my head forward like a turtle. He said this is what is causing my back muscles to be all tight. He says it is not really from stress. I mean do I really have that much stress in my life? Not really. I live a pretty charmed life. So here are my current goals: 1) I am going to stand up straight. 2) I am going to sit up straight in my chair with my butt to the back of my chair. 3) I am not going to slouch (it makes me taller :) 4) I am going to cut down on my drinking. (This week, I have only drank once) 5) I am going to join a group exercise class like yoga or boxing (I belong to a gym, but it is boring). 6) I am going to document what I eat more so I will be better aware of it and I can make conscious efforts to

  The train to Mokdong is crowded on a Thursday evening, and I shift uncomfortably, brushing against anonymous handbags and shoulders, happy it’s only a short ride from the point where I had transferred to line 5 (I don’t know what it is about the purple line, but it’s always been my least favorite). Today I’m headed to Bandi & Luni’s, a bookstore in the Mokdong U-plex, in order to purchase NU’EST’s newest album, Action , for a chance to get in to a fansign event. Its ironic, I think, that my last fansign in Seoul will be with the first group I ever went to one for. Assuming I get in. Attendance is determined by lottery, you see, so out of the albums sold Wednesday through Friday, 150 fans will be chosen. Of course, when I went to my first NU’EST fansign, getting in was a simple matter of being one of the first 150 fans to buy the album from the host record store on the specified day because it was first come first serve. I’m actually a bit proud of them for meriting a lottery styl

This is a guest review by Wilfred Lee of the Artist Journey Facebook Group . Photo by Um Misong. I've been searching for the best poutine in all of Korea. I remember my days in Canada going to a Harvey's restaurant and having them blow my mind with such a simple but 'me gusta' induced coma. Even Burger King in Canada had an awesome poutine! Hey, the gravy may not have been 'real gravy' and the cheese curds made the sound of wiping a window clean when you chew, but they were so vainglorious with their gracious portions of gravy and cheese, it was the perfect post party midnight munchie snack. So when my girlfriend told me she found a 'Poutine Factory' by my gym (it's okay, I have one cheat day a week), I was a little worried she might have been mispronouncing a completely different word, but lo and behold there is was! Although they have a variety of poutines, we tried the classic one as the foundation to measure the other ones. They come in two sizes

I noticed that Poutine Factory has opened in Gyeonidan down the street from Craftworks. It looks pretty cool and on a Monday night it looked pretty full. The menu looked pretty good and they had the fried with curds and gravy. If I wasn't on a diet, I would have stopped in. Anyone been yet? Leave a comment to let others know! Dan

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! I would like to thank everyone that helped support and help promote our kickstarter project. We ended up raising 1700 USD for this project and we are now ramping up production to get it ready for distribution. I am so happy to know that there is a market for a book like this and that many people are interested in it. I promise to post updates as we get to it. Sincerely, Daniel Gray

I was in Gyeongju on Saturday with my new friends Crystal and Rafaella. My friends are K-pop fans and they came all the way from Cyprus to see some of their favorite k-pop groups (Big Bang, Shinee, and G-Dragon). In Gyeongju they were holding the Hallyu Dream concert so our company helped arrange tickets for them and a tour during the day. We spent the day going to sites and ate at famous restaurants and snack stands like Hwangnam Bang (famous red bean bread, there are many imitators but the real one has a huge queue). It was Rafaella's birthday so we celebrated at a local cafe with a cake. Gyeongju is a historical city and it has some good sights. It is definitely worth a day trip there. Dan

Happy Chuseok everyone! Chuseok, the harvest holiday in Korea, is extended this year September 29, 30 and October 1. I hope you are planning to do something nice for yourself and your family. I have put some pictures of good gifts you might want to give or hint you would like to receive. If you would like to learn a bit more about chuseok, here are some past articles I have written: My First Chuseok with my Mother Chuseok is Korea's Harvest Thanksgiving

My goal this year was to travel more. I feel alive when I am on the move and I feel more motivated. I spent the day in Busan with a tour group eating and showing the sights of the city and I feel elated. Busan is a city full of energy and the food is top notch. When I looked down at the quality of the banchan before me, I realized that Seoul really needs to step up the quality. The kimchi here is crisp and full of flavor, the chilies feel like they have soaked up the sun and the fish is fresh and full of flavor. It's been a long day but a happy day of eating and sharing what I know about Korea with others. In one of the markets I visited, I had some fried snacks that where amazing. The oil had turned the batter around the stuffed chilies, shrimp and octopus into crystals that disintegrated at first bite. They even had some modern fried snacks such as American Tweggum which was mashed potatoes with onion that was battered and fried. LOL. I highly recommend you take a trip down to B

Shabu Shabu is a good meal to have with friends and on cold days. I had a meeting over at the 63 building and decided to have lunch there with a friend. At the 63 building there are numerous Japanese places and cafes but no Korean places. Anyway, Shabu 63 seemed to be a good choice. The place is modern looking. A bit upscale and they have those black ceramic induction burners for the soup. We ordered the lunch special (16500 a person). It came with an array of side dishes, veggies, meat and later noodles and mandu. Meh. I mean the food was fine, but nothing gourmet. The broth was flavorless (a ladle wasn't given to try it). The side dishes were ok as well. The meat was of decent quality. the service was a bit horrendous. We didn't have proper tongs and scissors to start cooking the food. Refills on side dishes took a while. We had to refill our own water (however, this is not a self-service place). What they need to do is to put one of those damn buttons on the tables so serve

First of all, I would like to thank everyone that has helped fund our Kickstarter Comic.   57 different backers have contributed $1,289. Thank you so much! We are 3 days from the final day and we are just $211 dollars from our goal. If anyone would like to help contribute to our project, we would truly appreciate it. If you can't contribute, then you can help by spreading this via social media networks or reblogging to help get the word out. Thanks so much. If you don't have a kickstarter account, you can also send a donation via paypal or credit card via this link. Now, here is a sample of the first comic that has been colored by our talented Heejeong. Dan                                                                                    

This is the real Korean beef restaurant and it hasn't really changed much in over 20 years. It is in a classic looking hanok and there is only one meat on the menu: Hanwoo (Korean Beef). You cool it on a cast iron pan with some cow fat to grease the pan. How's the meat? Perfect. You get some different cuts of beef. Some are richly marbled like snowflakes and other are more fleshy. You cook I on the pan briefly since you wouldnt want to burn your 38,500 per order meat. Afterwards, I recommend their fried rice. They take liquid from their turnip kimchi and cook it down and mix it with rice. It makes a risotto like dish with Korean accents. Dan Seungdong-gu Hongik-dong 431 (Wangshipri flagship); +82 2 2292 9772; 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m.;  www. 대도식당 .kr

This is one of the best fine dining restaurants I have been to in Korea because it is a perfect combination of all elements: location, atmosphere, cuisine and service. Located in Gahoedong this area is off the busy road in a quaint house that looks like an Asian chateau. Inside the tables are arranged in an orderly fashion and covered in white table cloth. You can see the chefs working diligently behind the glass covered open kitchen. The kitchen is orderly and clean which gives you confidence about the food. Service is polite and the menu is simple and seasonal. My meal started with a salad with a oxtail terrine that added a surprising note without taking over the salad. Then I had a frothy eggplant soup followed by crispy sea bream with a grapefruit butter sauce. The fish was crisp outside and hot in the center so I could tell the chefs had timed this correctly. For dessert was a small piece of cake with some ice cream topped with a wedge of fresh fig. The chef, Roland Hinni, is a l

Wow. I don't know what to say this doll is...well...it farts if you tickle its tummy and you can feed it milk and cereal. You can even get a toilet that shows you the poo. Yeah...wow...I know what I'm getting for everyone this Christmas. Korean people are not shy about talking about number 2. I remember that when I used to be a teacher, my student's favorite book was about the life of dog poo that turns into a beautiful flower. After dating a girl for a year and I had politely not farted for 1 year, when I finally did she was it was a relief to her because she thought I was shy and stuck up around her. Hey we all do it. Below is a video of a baby's first poo. It's cute and a bit graphic. Yeah, it's like a little poo baby that turns into a beautiful flower.

I think I have found my new man cave. I just have to start liking cigars. Burn Cigar Bar in Gyeonidan has a wide range of cigars, scotches, and dark rums in a distinguished room that overlooks the madness of the street below. You can easily sit up here and have a drop of something strong and brown while puffing away on a fine Cuban cigar. Sure it might sound like something your father or grandfather might have done but there are reasons for it. They had seen and experienced the world and was brainy enough to not run with the madness of the bar crowds. With a fine scotch and a cigar they could sit back and reflect. I am just romanticizing of course. I do enjoy a cigar every once in a while but I felt I never appreciated it. The owner Hal said to me, "It's just to enjoy. If you like it then that is all there is to it." The bar is like a speakeasy and it keeps away those looking for a typical foreigner bar. It seems exclusive, but it is not. The owner and staff are friendly

It has been another fabulous food week and what I need these is a physical trainer. There have been too many food adventures with my food company and as a food writer. It has been one of best weeks yet that our company has had. On Saturday we had 3 food tours (Jeonju food tour, Andong food tour, and a night dining tour) and a wine event. My stomach sure has had a workout and it is effecting my wardrobe. Today my goal is to head to the gym and burn a bunch of this food off. Anyway, the best eats I have had so far has definitely have to have been Seoul Bulgogi and Lee Kyu Bok Tuna in Hongdae. Seoul Bulgogi is a feast of enormousity cooked on a copper grill pan over real wood charcoal. Lee Kyu Bok Tuna gets you a feast of tuna with copious amounts of alcohol. If you give a tip to the chefs they might give you a shot of alcohol made with tuna eyeball. I was also lucky to try Chef Seba's lemon rosemary Porchetta (which can be found at High Street Market). This was amazing and goes grea