Daily Delights Shopping day in Dongdaemun Breakfast: Waffles and Coffee at Beans Bin If you are going to climb the epic shopping mountain of Dondaemun, them you have to get a hearty breakfast with lots of coffee. Beans Bin coffee in the shopping complex of Doota is a great first spot. They have freshly made waffles with many different toppings. Get your sugar and caffeine fix here. Beans Bin Coffee Location: Doota 3rd Floor Cost: 12,000 Lunch: Mongolian Buuz and Khuushuur at Darkhan The Dongdaemun area is the central point for many different ethnicities such as Mongolian, Uzbekistan and Russian. Darkhan offers authentic Mongolian fare such as steamed meat dumplings called buuz and fried meat stuffed pastries called khuushuur. Their lamb platter with rice and vegetables are good as well. If you are brave try their hot (sour) yogurt tea. Darkhan Cost: 7,000 Seoul, Jung-gu, Gwanghuidong 1-ga 188-5 02-2278-4633 Dinner: Marinated Pork Trotters at Pyeong-ando Jip Pyeong-ando Jip is famous fo...

Bakery Napoleon has a long history of making fine breads in Korea. Although many of the breads cater to the Korean palate (such as green tea, rice cake, cheese, bread) they have world class skills for desserts and their croissants. I have to say that their croissants are the closest you'll get to a partisan croissant in Korea. I love a good croissant in the morning with coffee and I am disappointed with many of the franchise croissants that have a sugary glaze on a burnt top (yes, Paris Croissant and Paris Baguette that dig was made at you.) They have a coup of misses in my book such as their famous red bean paste bread that the chocolate bread which just like a hotdog bun they put red bean or chocolate pudding in. But apparently, people flock here for those stuffed breads so my opinion must not count. Their coffee is not very good either and I decided not to get brunch or pasta or salad at a bakery. With that said, their croissants, cakes and tarts are worth the journey and that ...

In search of a good luncheon spot I meandered over to the stylish Samcheongdong area. My agenda was to find: a good date spot that had a good lunch selection and had good coffee so my girlfriend and I could eat and then go back to work reenergized. Heaven on Top almost fits the criteria. The cafe/restaurant is well-lit, modern, and upscale with its marble tables. It has British-flare with their fine selection of teas and fine porcelain tea pots and cups. The restaurant offers brunch food, sandwiches, salads and desserts. The breads and desserts are made in house and the carrot cake is one of the best ones I have had with its rich, thick and sweet cream cheese icing to go along with the spiced layers of cake. For the food menu, their ricotta cheese blueberry cheesecake is more like a stuffed turnover. The pancake is very plush filled with a good amount of cheese and blueberries. To accompany the pancake were 2 slices of bacon, some scrambled egg and a yogurt topped with granola...

it tastes pretty good with the mango juice and tapioca balls. Yum. You can find them at mango six. Locations all over korea.

This is a new bibimbap concept restaurant in the Yongsan Station shopping complex by the Cgv theatre. It is an upscale take with bibimbap starting at 10,900 won. You get rice cake to start and a minimal number of banchan (3). The interior is stylish with good lighting and music. It has a bit of Japanese flair. The rice bowls come out in a hot bowl places in a wood box. The Nakji bibimbap is nothing world changing. It is the same type of bibimbap you would get but they put the octopus in a fried flower bowl. The taste is good. A tad spicy and it has the regular veggies like bean sprouts, bracken carrots etc The soba salad is quite good. We hot the large (11,900). The taste is refreshing with a bit of hear from the wasabi soy dressing. The meat was juicy and well marinated as well for being so thin. The salad with iceberg lettuce, celery leaves, and cilantro was a nice touch. Oh, just to note. The large 대 is not super big, I would recommend that if you are having a meal. Overall, good c...

Good Morning Hanoi was a two at best. Which is sad because the one in Sorae Village is amazing. The atmosphere at the Insadong store is stylish and hip. That's about all it has going for it. Oh, and that the Jasmine tea is hot. The green curry tasted burnt yet the vegetables were fresh and well blanched. The tom yam goong rice noodle soup had good broth but a tad too spicy. I didn't appreciate the server plopping it down on the table causing it to splash all over. The noodles were over cooked as well. I think they were rushing because it was lunch time and they were packed. Still no excuse. Especially since they charge nearly 15,000 won for a bowl of Pho. Good Morning Hanoi 1 star out of 4 (poor service, rushed food and over-priced for what you get) 02-725-5320 Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea, 175 Insa-dong http://m.google.com/u/m/-wQQ49

I went for a quick dinner with a friend last night in Insadong and we found a new place doing spicy baby octopus. The place is a clean, refurbished hanok and the place has a cute vibe. There are hand-drawn menus on the table and on one wall there is a sign written in calligraphy that reads: today is a good day for baby octopus (jukumi). The food comes out in a hotpan and the sauce is flavorful. It is a bit spicy though so it is not for the weak. To balance out the spice you can add bean sprouts or ask for steamed egg (개란찜) (3,000 won). The place is reasonably priced as well. Jukumi is 10,000 a person and 12,000 if you want to add pork belly. Insadong Jukumi 2-stars (flavorful and reasonably priced. Service is terse, but I think it is because they are very new) Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea http://m.google.com/u/m/-Kc9QC

Oh, Cheese, how I love to cut you. The stinker and riper the better. Oh, Cheese, how I love to pair you. Dried fruits, hard nuts, and cured meats are your perfect bedfellows (a cracker just seems so plebeian) Oh, Cheese, how I love to wine you. You are so cosmopolitan and you are fine mingling with Italians, Australians, Africans, French, and Americans. Oh, Cheese, lets stay together forever. Lets see each other at every meal and every snack time. Lets make little cheese babies and help them mature into pillars of modern society. Cheese, thank you for showing me a new world. Thank you for just being cheese. You complete me. Dan

This is a cute cafe that offers a range f healthy drinks and snacks made from green tea. They have coffee as well for those they would like it. The red bean latte is a ok if you like red bean and milk and the green tea is good quality. Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea, 1 Myeongdong 2(i)-ga 02-745-0705 http://m.google.com/u/m/-0ZVE5

Chez Simon is still good but don't expect much change from the past. If you are looking for a decent coursed meal that stays true to form then visit Chez Simon. The Creme Brûlée is still top notch and so is the steak. The pictures can be found on my Instagram page . Follow me there for Seoul Food tips. http://instagram.com/seouleats/ Here is a past review: http://www.seouleats.com/2010/10/chez-simon-french-cuisine-done-right/ And another: http://www.seouleats.com/2010/11/chez-simon-redux/ Back before Samcheongdong became the date hotspot, the street was famous for restaurants. These days the trend seems to be on turn and burn establishments and too, too many cafes. My favorite bouillabaisse went defunct and became another cafe. Just when I thought all was lost, I happened to find Chez Simon. For years they have been turning out great homemade cuisine in a 20 seat, reservation-only restaurant. Chez Simon’s menu changes regularly depending on local ingredients that are available. The...

Saint Augustin Wow, I am impressed that this little restaurant that I once visited in Seorae Village (the French village of Seoul) has franchised out. The place is classy and it oozes Asian flair like Zen Hideaway. The place is hip and they have good food to match. Ok, it is not the authentic Thai food you would find in Thailand. It is a bit more refined and the prices match that. For a lunch meeting we ordered an assortment of dishes and they were all very good. The Poo Phad Phong Kari:fried soft-shelled crab in yellow curry (28,000 won). Great with the egg in the sauce and the crabs were soft. I would have preferred a tad crispier but it was good. We also had the Som Tam: papaya salad (16,000 won). This was super spicy and had a nice sauce. Very refreshing but could have used a bit more fresh lime. The Neua Phad Nammanhoy: beef with asparagus (29,000) went fast and was good but I would have been happy with a tad more beef and asparagus and less onion. The goongyai pad Thai (18,000) w...