Had a comforting Korean meal at Sujak Bansang 수작반상 by hapjeong station. All the banchan are made in house and they are creative in the presentation. Not exactly fusion, but not traditional.  It's nostalgic, fun fare. #koreanfood #hapjeong #seouleats 마포구 서교동 484-25 

Hello Seoul Eaters. Lately I've had the fortunate opportunity to photograph the moment adopting parents meet and pick up their new children here in Seoul. As you know our site founder Daniel is an adoptee so he's asked me to share my work. It's been very interesting, rewarding, and emotionally charged work. The process takes around two years and I just get the apex of a two year build up of emotion, expectation, excitement, and nervousness. All that spills out in a one hour meeting where the new parents finally meet a child they've only read about and seen pictures of, and the foster parents give up a child they've spent years caring for and getting to know. Needless to say there are tears on all sides, and thankfully I'm not in any of the pictures because I'd be embarrassing. The pictures in the small room with big windows are the initial meeting, and the outdoor shots are post-adoption family shoots. Enjoy. For more photos check out my site .

Basil Cream Croquette at Fingerfood Bar A croquette is the French deep fried pasty that is often filled with a bit of meat or fish and potatoes. The outside is crispy with nice bread crumbs and the filling is usually greasy spoon goodness. When I first came to Korea these were my go-to dishes because I worked at an academy and I would often have 10 minutes between classes to grab a snack dinner. The flavors varied but it could be kimchi and pork, spicy chicken, and curry. Now the curry ones were often the yellow packaged curry mix that has a slight semblance to real stuff mixed with a ton of MSG. I got tired of them pretty fast and I never looked back. Well, that was until I discovered Fingerfood Bar  (길모통이 칠리차차) near the backside of Hongdae (out Hapjeong Station Exit 5). The ajumma that runs the place is a little quirky and sassy. When we asked her if her basil and cream croquette was good she answered, "Of course. Everything I make is good." Finally, someone gives a d...

This article was originally supposed to have been published in another publication, but was never released. Hapjeong is still a great place to go.  Mary Jane's bartender/manager, Jake, has left as of this writing. If you didn’t know then you must not be in the know, is what I said to my friend as she told me there was nothing around Hapjeong Station. Maybe she imagined I was taking her to a dark alley instead of a romantic spot to spend a quiet Saturday. Around the outskirts of Hongdae, near Hapjeong Station, is a wealth of hidden eateries, dessert shops, and bars that are so cool that they don't have to brag about it. They simply are. Each time I walk down these streets they seem quite empty: barren. It's chill and relaxed and I don’t have to fight for elbow space among purse-toting guys and their overly-heeled girlfriends. It's what Garaksugil and Samcheongdong were like before the hordes of daters ravaged them. If you head out Hapjeong station exit 6, you’ll have...

Chulgo-un Book Cafe Here's a secret. Some of the places that I really like to go to, I won't post for a long time because...I don't want them to get too crowded. I'm not saying that a post on this blog makes any place famous, but, you know, one person tells another person and they tell another, etc- soon my quiet little place becomes not so quiet. Anyway, I know that restaurants and cafes need to stay in business. In Hapjeong, my favorite cafe is the Chulgo-un Book/Cafe. It's a quiet little cafe on the second floor. The coffee is ok. They have beer and wine, but the reason I go there is for the tranquil, bookish, artsy environment. This is where I go when I need to step back from it all and do some writing. Oh, and they have tons of books, so I like to go and browse for new ideas. It's out Hapjeong Exit 5 and walk down the street adjacent to the main road. It's about two blocks down. 즐거운 book/cafe 02.6081.4770 Open from Noon-Midnight Interior S...

I believe it's out Hapjeong exit 5 and down the street, but it could be down exit 7. It's a cute little cafe where the girl makes all of the memorabilia and stuff. Awesomely Cute stuff! Cute entrance Here is the artist/barista She makes all of the bags, shirts, coffee mug designs, etc. It's not Hello Kitty, it's Lazy Cat!

Rule of thumb: When a restaurant is always full and they start turning people away at 8:30, there's a good chance that the food is good. That seems to be the case at Bori-ool. Every time I've wandered down my favorite road, I've seen countless people inside. Last Wednesday, I finally went inside. It was alright. I mean it wasn't mind-blowing, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't want to go back, because I do. The place has comforting homemade food- the turnip water kimchi or turnip vichyssoise is refreshing. The turnip kimchi was also quite good- spicy, gingery, and crispy. The handmade pasta soup (sujebi) had thick bow ties of flour pasta. They were chewy and nice. The soup was a tad too spicy- way too many chili peppers. Anyway, the broth was good because it had a bit of dried fish bonito flakes on top. To finish off the meal, we had rice wine: dong dong ju. It's easy to get to. Get out Hapjeong Station Exit 5 and walk down the street. It's on the...

300g of steak goodness for only 27,000 won at Mary Jane near Hapjeong Station. You can get directions to Mary Jane here

Mojito Sapphire Martini

It wasn't a classic chocolate martini, but I managed to shoot it back. Over by Hapjeong exit 7, you'll find a number of chic, low profile bars and cafes. It's a great place to hangout and the food isn't bad.

Le Four is a baking studio that I found in Hapjeong down from exit 5. The interior looks like my grandmother's house--there are many antiques. The owner studied at Cordon Bleu. Here is his strawberry tart. Le Grand Choux Meringue Here is the brother of the chef. He helps out in the shop. To get there, go out exit 5 and make a left. Walk to the end of the street and you'll find it on your left. Oh, and the best part about this place is that they have ovens that you can use to make your own cakes. That's right. You just pay for the ingredients and they'll let you use their mixers, space, and ovens to bake your own cakes. 서올시 마포구 합정동 369-15 1층 02-326-6218 http://cafe.naver.com/lefour