Seoul Story 4: Sulong Tang!
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Rich milky beef shank and bone broth, “Sulong Tang” with Mom and Dad. We come here at least once when I’m in Korea now. The broth is simmered and prepared in enormous iron pots for days and nights sitting on traditional wood burning fire pits. There are multiple pots simmering and brewing this rich broth separated by parts of the cow this restaurant uses.
Here we have a core table of Korean Sulong Tang! Kimch, young green peppers and rustic miso paste to be dipped, finely chopped fresh scallion. Check out the soup! How milky that is. Sulong Tang is never served already seasoned. The broth is just water and cow bones that are boiled forever. You will need to season by using good old simple rock salt. Here this restaurant uses Bamboo Baked Sea salt which comes in bit of grey shade. What’s in the soup? Bits and pieces of meat, slices of Ginseng, mushroom. Clean and rich flavor. Actually this soup is ideal for cold winter days, it will fill you up and heal your soul…!
Seoul Story 3: Walking Myung Dong
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OK, Come with me to walk Myung Dong!!!!!!!
It has been years for me to stroll Myung Dong again. Hustle bustle of million office buildings, clothing shops and all the street vendors you can imagine. It’s the Mecca where Korean consumerism truly breathes. It was then steal cut sweet yam fries in newspaper cones and how many of them I had? Haha! But now I see the sweet yam is replaced by this amusingly fried potato chips on a stick! I find them fascinating. They look quite beautiful to me. ” Ajumma” (: a middle aged married woman usually with couple kids) below overseas her “fried” table. Very typical scene in Korea!
A cute little shop called Silk Button, Everything here is made out of Silk covered buttons! And…cousin Yoonhee.
More street food vendors. Oden on stick, ttuck bocki and more… Ahh nostalgia..! This so reminds me of my junior high’s… And cheap street shoes
Just like Tokyo and HK, sea of signs greets you in Myung dong. Wait until the night . They will all lit neon lights…!
More cheap high street fashion of Seoul. Wow the street is getting really packed!
Forever 21 in Myung dong. Entire just hired greet the customers. Did you know Forever 21 is a Korea brand?
You know Emi and I have been really embracing the good old vinyls these days. It became Emi’s weekend routine to find some great albums, which means good music, good cover or good anything you can imagine. Now I try here in Seoul. I love how this place has this mini stools in various colors and height where you can put down your heavy tush. Haha. I got a few my nostalgic vinyls from my high school years like “Lee Mun Se”, ” Lee Seng Chul” and also one album called ” Thank God it’s Friday!” which comes with fancy 3 vinyls inside from this place right here. tHe shop is located on under passage to Shin Se ghe department store in Myung Dong.
It’s now the time for ‘Shaved Ice=Bing Su’!!! Yoonhee finds this place on the second floor while I was taking the photo of potato chips. Nice and Spacious with delicious Bing Su that comes with Red Mango on top! Yum Yum !!
This was mine. Grapefruit and Tangerine Sorbet over the cool shaved ice and shaved banana and to top it off, red Mango!!
This was Yoonhee’s. Green tea Ice cream over the bed of Shaved ice with toasted Almond, sliced banana soft cubes of Mocci covered with toasted Soy bean flower…and Red Mango Frozen Yogurt. Mega Yum! A hot day? No problem with one of this this!
Pretty much Myung Dong is a big melting pot of everything. People with different point of view, street life, food, shops, finance offices, embassies, coffee shops and so much more. It’s a place to definitely check out if you are in Seoul!!Seoul Story 2: Garosu Gil
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After a long day of fitting and all with our vendors in Seoul, Daniel, Amy and I headed out to Garosu Gil in Seoul. Garosu means “Trees that are lined up on the side walk” and Gil means the Street. Garosu Gil is a small area in South side of “Han River” that has many cafes, Restaurants and small boutiques that reminds of Nolita in NY. Bit Young, lively, bohemian and somehow also bit polished.
Here a home style cooking Korean Restaurant, “Modern Bapsang”. You will find many places that are literally residential property transformed into a lovely small businesses in Seoul And I like it for it’s approachable warm attitude. I love the pink wall against the green along the rustic wood paneled passage way. You pass the small alley then you will hit the open yard staging the open door restaurant filled with people dining. It’s very Lovely!
One After another plenty of open door restaurants are lined up along the Garosu here in Garosu Gil. It was a Monday evening but it seemed like it did not matter to anyone here. Hustle an bustle, the night is just not long enough!
A open kitchen Japanese Restaurant.
A sake house.
Sorry I didn’t pay attention to the name of this place, but You can’t miss it! This hugely open rustic modern coffee shop is quite fantastic with a roof top as well. The street becomes the coffee shop and the shop becomes your street.
Here’s another good example of a private residency turned into a lovely Italian restaurant. Every inch between the building has been used up for outdoor space business here in Garosugil.
This little and very much old school ” Oden” house is epitome of bohemian soul of Koreans. Just right amount of space and your perfect friends sitting right next to you chatting and sipping. I find this place superbly designed thinking of your tired soul in mind.
Any Second floor offers just important business opportunities as the ground floor in Seoul. Just like in Tokyo it’s a big metropolitan city that needs endless space for endless ideas.
After bit of wondering, here we sat down and had some street food with a modern twist at ” School Food”. It’s a restaurant where offers all the street food that every Korean had grew up on during the school years. Above pic shows 9 flavor mini kimbap ( korean style maki roll)! Can you see the Squid ink rice maki with spicy squid inside? The rest futures toasted baby anchovies, kimchi, tuna with fresh sesame leaf, bulgogi ( thinly sliced bbqed sirloin) and more. Yummy!
This Ttuck bocki will put your tongue on fire! The #1 street food for all the students in Korea. Rice cake simmered in spicy chili broth with onions, cabbage and oden bits. Water please!!
Here some of cute shops on Garosugil. This shop called ” Happy Lady” had some great soft tops at reasonable price.
If you are visiting Seoul one day, Garisu gil is a place to check out. You will have fun strolling!
Seoul!
Seoul Story 1: Chadolbeghi!
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It’s day 3 with my family in Seoul and everything has been really around the food so far. Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. Catching up with cousin Yoonhee all day, she took us to this little run down “gogi jip” in YongSan Dong. The restaurant is called ” BongSan Jip” (Youngsan Dong 3 ga 1-21, T: 793-5022) and my cousin even saw a party of 6 of a Fashion designer, Muccia Prada here once. It’s a family run Meat specialized restaurant. You go in, you sit down where you want and order the usual. Chadolbeghi! (Brisket)
The charcoal man brings his small batch of charcoal. Then the circular grill that looks like one made out of bunch of metal chopsticks with center coverage. The light soy based dipping sauce with freshly chopped green scallion and young peppers does the job and also the super thinly sliced the beef Brisket. The thickness of the brisket will change everything. Now what do you do? Wait until the grill gets sizzling hot then put the beef on the grill until it shrinks (cooks) to the perfection, dip it in the sauce and don’t forget to grab a good mount of scallion and the peppers. Delicious!! You have an option to order a spicy Miso in a small pot and a bowl of rice to finish the meal! Ton of tofu and more chadolbeghi are in there! Yum!
It’s the time to hit the road again!
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Some travel moments here…
Early morning Tulum Beach in February this year.
Emiliano and Gael just got tickets to Italy for 6 weeks over July and August, and the end of July, myself will be in Asia visiting Seoul, HK and Tokyo then back to NY for 2 days and off to join the boys and family in Italy for about 2 weeks. It would be super fantastic to see my mother, dad and cousin and bit excited to explore my new favorite city, Seoul again. Asia gets Always hectic since I’m usually there for the work first, but I’ll try to squeeze in some personal time for the weekend with family. I was watching the “Bizarre Food” on the Travel channel the other day. Andrew Zimmern shares all the bizarre food and crazy fun traveling the world. And on boy its was Tokyo this time talking about pig’s guts and heart that new hip generation enjoys eating! I thought it was quite interesting. I like to stroll through also different areas of Tokyo this time. Should I try On Sen? The theme restaurant like ” Alcatraz” looks quite crazy! It would be nice to re visit a temple at Asakusa in Tokyo.
Heyri Art Valley, South Korea.
Check out one of blog about Sam chung dong , Seoul http://www.lacasapark.com/la/2009/12/a-beauty-samchung-dong-1-seoul-korea/
Yearly trip to Italy has always good balance of knowing what’s coming and not knowing what else is coming. The family, feast, the ocean and friends are what I know then there are always other possibilities that we may stumble into spontaneously! A dance party at a Castle or quick visit to other city in Europe? All is good surprise and recharging time for us and a chance to oil our ( Gael and Me) Italian to be more current and be fine tuned.
Last year Art Biennale Venezia, Italy
A local wine shop. Bring your empty bottle, they will fill it up! Italy
Typical early morning scene in Livorno. They read Newspapers and chat with friends for couple hours in early morning feet in the fresh ocean water.
Typical light filled Tuscan scene.
Last year in Paris for our 10 year anniversary.
Champs Elysees
Visit to Berlin with Kelly early this year.
Anyway,, Some flash back photos here but the point is it;s that time again!! There is this work I like to explore that only down side is that no time travel ALL the time. Brazil, Spain, Iceland, Sydney, back to Berlin and eveywhere else…
If I could just travel and take photos, now That would be my ideal life!
More photos of Seoul
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Corso Como in Seoul. It’s a beautiful shop.
Pagoda detailed fence of Residence of Current president and Buk-Ak mountain looking it down.
A coffee shop on the other side of the Buk-Ak mountain, forgot the name of it. Great coffee!
Smart and simple details with small wood blocks, same coffee shop.
Typical breakfast.
6 different floavors of Kimbap( like maki roll)
Koreans love ‘ Sooung-Nyuong”, hot water poured and simmered bit to the little left over rice still inside the pot. It has this wonderful flavor of nutty and soothing taste. People drink the warm rice flavored water. It almost tastes like Barley Tea.
I believe this is a building of Amore Pacific, a high end cosmetic brand. Soho in NY also has a fancy boutique of the brand.
One of the cafes on Garosu gil ( means tree lined street), a trendy area with small boutiques and many restaurants. Somewhat like Nolita of NY.
More Garosu gil
Time to hang? go to Univercity towns: Hong-ik University, Seoul
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There are almost 50 Universities in Seoul and hilly little streets around every University is pretty much well stocked up with cheap and trendy restaurants, street food, bars, shops, karaokes, small theaters and everything else you can imagine. There are a few university towns that are absolutely popular and those would be the town around Hong-ik ( traditionally known for their fine art department) and Ewha Woman’s ( well known for sassy, smart and trendy girls of the University). Yoonhee and I made a quick stop at the town of Hong-ik.
The school entrance.
A Beauty: Samchung Dong, Seoul-Part 2
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So, Samchung dong’s real charm is Coexistence of old and new. Modern day living in traditional space. All these business owners show how you do it.
One of many big and small cafes… 2 leveled with multiple entrances and completed with a wooden enclosed deck. I heard this one opened around a year ago and is very popular. By the way, in Seoul, valet parking is a very common thing.
This little box like standing alone building is a Dry Cleaner. Love the sign!
A cute coffee shop. They also carry small line of Vitra product in the cafe. A very common concept in Seoul and similar to ones in Stockholm, Sweden. A space that has it all: clothing, books, coffee, cut hair… You name it!
This coffee shop was covered with many small pieces of whatever paper. Funny place.
This is straight out from my childhood! Sticky rice power dough with sweet syrup inside then fried on a hot griddle. We call it Ho-ttuck. Crispy and Sweet. Delicious!!!!!!!!! And the fun factor is that this is out of Rice shop. Very Korean!
People are lined up to get into a place of this traditional Korean sticky rice cake dish, “Ttuck bokki”: thick strings of rice cake are cut off into pieces and cooked and stir fried on a pan with spicy chili paste, sugar, crushed garlic, soy sauce, veggies and fish cakes. You have to taste it to know what it is like!
This beautiful rustic modern house is a Korean BBQ house, Danpung namu. Doesn’t this house look like one from the Dwell magazine?
Surrounding rock and metal cased fence. Cool, ha?
Mid Century Modern and Antique shop.
This one was the most non Korean one I saw in Samchung dong.
A Beauty: Samchung Dong, Seoul, Korea-Part 1
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I don’t know “Why” I never made an effort to see more of Seoul whenever I was on a business trip. Sometimes, Seoul would be sandwiched with other cities to be visited, but from now on, I have to really make some time to see my home city better.
Samchung Dong is a area where old fashioned traditional Korean homes, Han-Ok, with humble and beautiful pagoda roofs are still protected and standing firmly very closely located to Cheongwadae (the Office of the president of Korea). I hear the development of this town has been strictly banned until very recent days. It is also the heart of old Seoul. You’ll find people who proudly say their grand father’s father was also born in this town. Coming from the metropolitan area, you might think the time in this area stopped in the 70s yet the old isn’t just what Samchung dong stands for…! ( wait to see the part 2!)
There are ton of tiny traditional tea houses, cafes, restaurants, galleries, shops and street food vendors wrapped around hilly residential homes and off the beaten path small streets. It’s adorned by both the young and the old. Definitely charming. Definitely bohemian.
One of formal presidents, Yoon Posun’s residence is also located in Samchung dong. It’s beautiful…
A weekend in Korea: Lunch with Yoonhee
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At one restaurant, Nok-Won, in Jam-sil, Seoul where my cousin lives… 2 different kind of simmered pork (one was done in more Chinese way with chinese herbs, the other one was done in simple Korean way, maybe there was garlic and some ginger in the broth to simmer the meat), cabbage kimchi, chive kimchi, steamed deep-sea seaweed, raw garlic slices, green peppers. So what you need to do is that take a lettuce leaf, place couple of whatever is on the plate in your preferred mix, put some spiced miso paste, wrap it all up. Now, they are ready to be eaten up!
So in Korea, you will see such thing called ” Jung-Sik” on the menu, which means kind of combo set. So many restaurants will have Jung -Sik in their way. I believe we ordered Jung-sik in this restaurant, which included the big plate, the first photo, the veggie Buns as above and noodle in rich beef bone broth.
Delicious!!