Review: 2 Stars: Recommended (Serving system needs an overhaul, food is good and not expensive, atmosphere is quaint) Who would have guessed that it would take a Buddhist Monk to rejuvenate Korean cuisine and make it popular to westerners and Koreans. Master Dae-Ahn of Balwoo restaurant is doing just that. The Jogeysa Order of Buddhist monks now has 3 restaurants in Seoul. Their flagship store Balwoo- across from Jogeysa temple is usually booked every day. I tried to get a reservation over the weekend and they told me that it was booked over a week ago. The one criticism that many people had about the Balwoo Restaurant on the 5th floor was the price. With meals starting at 25,000 a person- it's not a place you can eat at regularly. The humble monks realized this and then opened Balwoo Gongyang Kong on the 3rd floor of the same building. It is a Buddhist cafeteria style restaurant so it is self service but prices are modest (meals start at 6,000 won).  Oh, and you can only go up...

A Tower of Macarons Macarons in Korea are pretty, but not often real macarons. They have the concept right, just not the texture and flavor. A true macaron is made with skill. Egg whites should be beaten to stiff peaks and then ground almonds or coconut is folded into the mixture and then baked. Inside it can have a filling, but the filling shouldn't be too gluey- it should be as light and as fine as the light disks around it. You can take shortcuts and cheat on macarons by adding flour or corn starch, but this will make the macaroon taste bready. At first bite, the macaron shell should split and you should reach a sweet, airy, disk before you get to the soft cream. Each bite should be slow, for it should be a heavy dose of sweetness compounded by a soft texture. Macarons are good carriers for flavors so often many variations are made. Amandier, across from Insadong (Anguk Station Exit 1) makes their macaroons with skill. The Belgium baker, Jan Adrian, has a playful, coque...