In Korea, you really have to be a first mover. If not, you'll never get off the ground. Being in Korea for 10 years, I have been owned or partnered in a number of businesses. Some have worked and some have not. The one thing I do know is that if you want to survive you have to look like you are doing terrible that you should be humble and that you are just getting by. This will keep you under the radar.  The problem with this is that my background is marketing and that I was born with the American Entrepeneural spirit (I know that sounds cheesy). My upbringing dictated that you should always look successful despite all the challenges and pitfalls.  If you look successful then people will copy. Sometimes a straight up copy or a gaudier, upgraded copy with cut corners. They will tackle price points to the point they will make no money. They will do all this to steal walk-by customers. It seems there is no honor or community in the business industry here. Every business wants to ...

The other day, my company was invited out to the Dragon Hill Lodge to see the facilities. The meetings went well and another cool thing was we were able to introduce real American Apple Pie and Red Velvet Cake to our staff.  The apple pie from the base has a thick crust and there are lots of sweet apples in a cinnamony-sugar syrup. It just tastes like America. The red velvet cake there is absolutely delicious as well. The cake is spongy with lots of semi-sweet cream cheese.  Now what we didn't expect was that our staff was going to cut it all up and eat it with chopsticks. It actually worked pretty well and it took up less time and resources (no plates needed). Next time I'm going to bring some ice cream. Let's see if they can eat that with chopsticks.  Dan

There is fire on the Hipster Seoul Tour This is Iron Man Hipster on the Hipster Seoul Tour This is an OG Korean Hipster Lots of Fun on the Hipster Seoul Tour As Seoul has become a more popular destination for tourists, the real Seoulites have had to move to adjust to rising rents and food prices. In the hip district of Mullae-dong, artists and machinists have taken residence to transform the area to a cool art village with urban art pieces, art studios, restaurants and cafes right next to machinists transforming steel into industrial works. It will show you the cool, undiscovered area of Seoul as we dine at famous restaurants and eateries. This is a 3 hour tour. Food and drinks are included.  Highlights  *See a hipster art village  *Try Great Korean Food: Korean Pancake, Fried Chicken, Barbecue and dessert  *Learn about Korean Culture through stories and fun drinking games Tour info Tours cost 80 USD a person (minimum 3) and starts from M...

The 5 Best Gourmet Kimbap Joints in Seoul Kimbap is for Koreans like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are for Americans, fish n chips for the British, Crepes for the French or marmite and margarine sandwiches for Australians. It is a nostalgic everyday snack food that many Koreans associate with school picnics and festivals. It is a simple dish. It is just rice seasoned with some roasted sesame oil placed on a sheet of seaweed stuffed with various vegetables and meat like yellow egg, orange carrots, white cucumbers, green spinach, pink ham, brown burdock, and yellow turnip. They are then wrapped carefully, yet firmly, brushed with some more sesame oil (to prevent the seaweed from ripping) and then sliced into rainbow disks that tastes best when eaten from the fingertips. Variations of kimbap are boundless. It can be stuffed with tuna fish, kimchi, beef bulgogi, shrimp, crab, cheese, and even crispy, tiny anchovies. I have even seen dessert kimbap and "nude" kimbap...

Dear Daniel, I would really like to ask you on your personal views for the Korean solo eating culture. I am planning a solo trip to Korea soon and I would like to check if eating alone is much shunned upon in Korea. I have been there a couple of times with friends and I have never seen someone eating alone. Of course, Ive also sussed out some 'alone' eating places like 이찌멘, 제일제면소, 이야기하나 (ㅎㅎㅎ), but was just thinking if it'll be viewed as weird if I were to just go into a restaurant alone and have grilled meat. Or noryangjin and have stew alone. How about cafes too? Would really appreciate some tips from you on eating alone in 한국. Thank you! :) Regards, Janel.K http://www.jankliciouz.blogspot.kr/ Dear Janel, Thanks for the letter. In the past eating alone was generally looked down upon but these days it is becoming more common as more Koreans embrace the "singleton" lifestyle. More restaurants are allowing single diners and it is not so uncommon. Especially in ...

It was a good day. I went to Hongdae to say good-bye to some friends as they left to go home overseas. I had some time to kill so I found a cafe on Hondae's main street. I decided to go to Cafe Nouveau. I ordered a espresso (4,500 won), got a cherry mille-feuille (6,500 won) and read a comic (free :). A perfect day I have to say. The coffee was rich and dark and the cherry mille-feuille had lots of fresh cherries; fresh, lush cream; flaky pastry and rich, dark coffee. The dessert was perfect for one person. I would have loved it to have been bigger, but its not really Korean style. Plus cherries are quite expensive here so I was really surprised they put so many cherries on the cake. Cafe Nouveau Phone +82 70-7743-3265 Click here to open map on your phone . Address: Mapo-gu Seogyodong 330-21 마포구 서교동 330-21 / 1층 Nouveau 커피 & 디져트 전문점 Seoul, Korea Phone +82 70-7743-3265

Seoul Eats Instagram Hi all, I guess in these days of Social Networking there are so many avenues to share and reach people. In the past, it used to be all about the internet and the blogs. I enjoyed that period and I still enjoy blogging. I don't do it as much because it seems to be more of a forum for long form composition. And...these days I don't have as much time. Preparing to be a dad, running a startup, and being a husband is taking up quite a bit of my time. So...these days I have noticed that the Instagram platform is where I have been focusing a bit more on short form writing and on pictures. Here are some of my favorite posts in the last few weeks. If you are looking for daily Seoul Eats updates, please follow me at  https://instagram.com/seouleats Thanks, Dan My wife says a business trip is a lucky chance. A chance to shop for luxury stuff at the duty-free stores. She promises me she is saving me money. Yeah, right. This is a 170 dollar scrub brus...

Korean Grilled Fish and Soup for Lunch at Hakdong Interior I am a simple guy. For lunch, I am happy with a well grilled fish, rice and some side dishes. I like rustic Korean style food for lunch because usually I'm hungry, the good food relieves stress, and its comforting. I mean I didn't come all the way to Korea to eat hamburgers everyday. At Bada Dunporun Saengson Gui you can get good Korean fare at a reasonable price (starting at 7,000 won). Sides are good and the grilled fish is exceptional. They get a really nice crust on the fish and it is nicely salted. Other than the fish, the other stuff is just average. The kimchi stew is not going to win any awards nor will their doenjang stew. However, you won't go hungry and the food quality is good. Especially for the Gangnam district which is notorious for skimping out on side dishes and stuff. Bada Dunporun Saengson Gui 바다 등푸른 생선구이 Ph: 02-549-5262 Click here to open map on mobile: Address: Gangnam-gu Nonhyeondo...

Korean Birthday Cake. They eat it wit chopsticks and usually together as a group instead of getting lots of plates and stuff. These days, I am busy working at a Delectable Travels  and it is nice to be part of a good team. For years I worked independently or at small startups. I thought that working at a company was inhuman and against the "entrepreneurial" spirit. It's nice to have support and other opinions to help a business thrive. During lunches and such, I don't have as much time as I used to to find all the best eats. Luckily after work, we can do that. Anyway, these are just some snapshots I have taken and wanted to share with you. I particularly love the first one which is of our team celebrating a colleagues' birthday party. The cake was actually pretty good. It was the banana cake from Paris Baguette. The cake was light and it had fresh marshmallows. Oh, marshmallows are a thing now and I think will be trendy this year. Enjoy the pics. Dan ...

It was a good foodie weekend. I met up with some friends. I was interviewed by the BBC for a segment on young entrepreneurs in Korea (yeesh, I don't think I'm young anymore, but I'll take it) and I ate a lot of good stuff. Here is a round up. Chef Meili's Austrian Deli Chef Meili First of all, I visited my old friend Christian Meilinger over the weekend. I had heard that he had moved on to Austria but his sausages and deli meats would stay in Korea just taken over by Mission Springs Restaurant. Apparently, yes and no. He is still here because he feels he has a responsibility to his customers and so he has set up a small deli over by Hannam-dong. He is serving up his handmade sausages and delicatessen treats. The place is not as fancy as his last place but the food is still excellent. Chef Meili Austrian Deli Click here for the map on your phone Seoul, Seongdong-gu Oksu-dong 475 02-797-3820 Food Court at W-Mall 25 Layer Cutlets from W-Mall W-Mall F...

A special thanks to the production team from the BBC to come to our little bar, Brew 3.15 in Seoul to interview me about being a young entrepreneur in Korea. Thanks!  A question that I am asked frequently is, "Daniel, is it difficult to start a business in Korea?" I have to say, "yes and no." It first depends on the type of business you are trying to start and your visa status. I won't go into all the different visas and such. I mean you can find that out here:  http://southkorea.angloinfo.com/working/starting-a-business/  Apparently, now if you are trying to get a foreign investor visa you need to invest 100 million into the country. But I have heard this figure change from 50 million to 250 million. I have an F-4 visa which means I am an overseas Korean. If I was married to a Korean, I could get an F-2, or I could get an F-5 visa (permanent resident) visa and I could easily do business here. So...if you have a visa that will let you work here then th...

Ok, I will admit it. I was a bad boy last week so my lovely wife was a little upset with me. So on Sunday, I had to make it up to her. While she slept, I cleaned the house (even though I still think it would be easier to hire a maid); I went shopping (in the rain...the sacrifices you make for love) and then I made homemade rice rolls or Korean kimbap.  I have to admit, they turned out pretty darn well. Here is the set up. Spicy Pork Rice Rolls Set up (Kimbap) Now the pork, I got some moksal (meat from around the neck) and then I chopped it up really fine and then cooked it with some oil, red chili paste, plum extract (maesil), garlic powder and a bit of sugar. Just make sure to stir or the sauce will stick to the pan and burn. I simply julienned the cucumbers (take out the seeds) and carrots. For the rice, I took it out, and added some lemon vinegar (my new favorite vinegar in Korea. I also bought some kimbap seaweed, sesame leaves (gaennip) and some yellow turnip. ...

Lasagna at Booming G Salmon at Booming G The come fast and go fast. Booming G is not closed, they fired their chef and decided to go with a cafe model with crappy food just after 1 month. It is sad sad sad when management doesn't give a place. RIP Booming G. Hello just another cafe in a city full of cafes.  Give props to chef Bora Song though. If anyone is looking to hire a talented chef send me an email.  Dan I was lucky to be invited to the opening of Booming G in the New Sidus HQ Tower in Gangnam. The chef is Bora Song who is well known in the foodie community. She has set up a great Italian focused menu and she uses her creativity to add depth of flavor to her dishes.  While I was there I had an excellent free-form lasagna made with fresh noodles. I loved the meat and sauce on it. There is a secret ingredient in it to give it body. Ask the chef to find out what it is.  Risotto from Booming G Chicken Wing from Booming G Her mushroom ri...