Lotte recently built a new tall building in Seoul, so we decided to take a last minute trip to check it out. We were a bit hungry, so we grabbed a quick bite at The Lounge, which is one of the few places you can dine at.
They have small bites, afternoon tea, salads, and burgers. The food is a bit costly for the quality and size, but you get a nice birds eye view and ambiance.
I know I’ve said this before, but I seriously love cafes. I love tea, the smell of coffee, and appreciating the culture of the shop. Today, we stopped by: Everything but the Hero Cafe in Itaewon.
Fun fact: this cafe is owned by Jo In Sung’s brother. Jo In Sung is a Korean actor who… you know what, here’s a link to his Asian Wiki page since I had to look him up to figure out who he was too (oops!).
Bright white interior with lots of seatings up stairs. They even had a room (with a door that closes!) with a long table for students working on group projects or professionals needing a meeting space.
You can even snag a seat next to the large windows throughout the cafe.
Also, can we quickly pause at how tiny that tea - it’s more like an espresso - cup is?
I’m sensitive to caffeine, so I got a nice camomile tea as my afternoon drink.
Wow that coffee was fresh and I liked the slight cinnamon kick to it.
They also gave us some free chocolate, which they make themselves at the cafe. The chocolate wasn’t too sweet, was rich, and had that perfect amount of slight bitterness to wrap it all up. It didn’t taste like a cheap chocolate bar.
You will pay a bit more for a cup of coffee here, but hey, they make good coffee, they have a few pastries you can select from, and a nice ambiance. It’s cafes like this that makes me wish I was still a student. I would’ve loved to camp out here and work on papers or study for an exam.
I was disappointed by my usual go-to jjajangmyeon delivery when I was here during the summer, so we decided to try out Mao in Itaewon instead.
I’d recommend driving or taking a cab here since it is a bit of a hike from the subway station.
But if you’re craving something else, they have other options on the menu too.
I love open kitchen concepts and like how the staff were speaking in Chinese (don’t worry, they know Korean too!) and were laughing with each other. It kept the mood light and vibrant.
The meat was tender - you’d be surprised at how many hard tangsuyuk’s I’ve had - and I liked how the meat wasn’t overly drowning in the sweet and sour sauce.
Now this is a dish I haven’t had in a while. The sauce was light, the noodles were nice and crispy (except at the bottom) and they filled your plates with some broccolis, scallions, shrimp, mushrooms, and others.
One of my favorite comfort foods.
I’m still a child so I always ask for scissors to cut my noodles. The sauce wasn’t thick, it was actually a bit watery, but it didn’t taste like your cheap take-out jjajangmyeon.
My favorite jjajang place I’ve ever had is still the one in Chinatown, Incheon (post here), but if I’m looking for something simple, good tangsuyuk, and I’m in the area, I wouldn’t mind coming here to satisfy my cravings.
P.S. rumor has it that seats gets filled quickly at this restaurant on the weekends, so come for lunch on a weekday or arrive a bit early on a weekend to skip the crowd.
On our last day in Korea, we decided to let our bodies rest and sleep in a bit. We met up with my Aunt and Uncle at Yong Su San for some good traditional Korea food from the Koryo Dynasty.
We ended up doing the lunch set menu so we could taste a little bit of everything, and I highly recommend that you do too if you ever make your way over here.
The food was fresh, it was filling but didn't make you feel heavy at the end of the meal, and the ambiance of this restaurant was sophisticated but not to the point you felt like you had to dress up to eat here. I honestly don’t have any negative comments.
I highly recommend that you check this place out if you want good Korea traditional food. Even the staff were accustomed to people taking photos of their meal, so they were exceptionally patient and understanding.
Huge shoutout to my Aunt and Uncle for finding this spot and treating us to this delicious meal!
While my friends and I were walking around Itaewon trying to find a place to eat, we randomly picked Monalisa.
Even though I was mentally prepared for the food to be Korean-influenced, what I ended up tasting was something I was not prepared for.
A simple, safe dish. It was a little sweet but overall, not too bad.
Throw in some shrimp, vegetables, and sweetener (wait, what? Yup).
Ah, Korea’s carbonara is always sweet and not as creamy and a bit more watered-down. I’m used to this taste, so it feels like nostalgia, but I can see how others wouldn’t be too keen.
Okay, so this is what I really wanted to talk about: two pizza dishes. I already mentally prepared myself that Korean pizza (or just Italian food in general) would be sweet, but this pizza was something I was not ready for.
They added the cheese and meat on this pastry-like-bread making the food taste 10 times sweeter. I kept eating it because I couldn't tell whether I liked it or not. The verdict? I did not like it and I thought it was really odd!
First time for everything though, right?
I actually don't have a lot of photo for day 3 since we spent most of the day shopping at a Lotte Department store and at Meyongdong (you have to check out Stylenanda's interior (link here) when you visit).
We had lunch a Lotte's food court since they have a grand selection and before that, we walked around Namdemun market.
At night, we decided to venture out to Sinchon to grab drinks with my friends, but because I didn't bring my camera out with me, we just used our phones to capture film for my vlog.
On day 4, we decided to hangout in Gangnam. If you're looking for a fun photo-opp spot and good Korean make-up, check out Jung Saem Mool's store.
Hello, Day 2! We went to Namiseom Island, Petite France, and lunch at this random dak-galbi (닭갈비) place for lunch.
To get to Namiseom from Seoul, you'll have to reserve an ITX tickets and get off at Gapyeong station, then take a cab or bus to the ferry station, and then finally make your way over to Namiseom.
To get to Petite France, once you head back to the mainland from Namiseom, you can either take a bus or taxi. There isn't much to do there, but if you're a huge kdrama fan and you want cute photos, then it might be worth stopping by.
P.S. I highly recommend that you rent out a bike when you're at Namiseom. I promise you won't regret it and it'll make the trip 10 times better.
I still can't believe this trip happened.
One of the friends who I went on this trip with and I have been singing about going to Korea ever since we met back in 2012. We jokingly talked about going to Korea in 2018 with my guy friend when he came to visit DC back in late 2017, so when we actually booked our flights and met up in Korea, it all felt surreal.
This whole trip still feels like it was a dream.
I didn't take photos at every single location since I've blogged about it before/jet lag was really real on day 1, but here's how our first day played out:
We started the day at Gyeongbokgung Palace and rented out a hanbok. They have shops at almost every corner in this area, so you shouldn't have any issues finding it. Admission to the palace was free since we were dressed up!
We then walked over to Samcheong-dong (link here and here) which was about a 20 - 30 minute walk and ate at my favorite Sujaebi restaurant (link here). Although I wanted my friends to try out this amazing red bean soup (link here) next door to the Sujaebi restaurant, we were desperate for caffeine, so we decided to run to a cafe instead.
We then walked around Bukchon village, made our way to insadong afterwards, and then crawled into bed and called it a night fairly early.
Hello! I can't believe it's been over a month since I last posted. It's been a crazy past few months. I went from traveling to Korea, Philippines, back to DC, to having friends visit, and now packing up to get ready for a new move since my apartment lease is up.
Safe to say, 2018 has been anything but dull and slow. Stay tuned for more food photos and blog posts from my trip back to the motherland. Until then, here's a quick preview of my travels with two good friends.
Whenever I come to Korea, this is one place I love to stop by. Getting my sujaebi fix at Samcheong-dong. Sujaebi is a traditional Korean dish and the noodles are a bit thicker and doughy. We also ordered potato pancakes as a side.
Make sure you get here a bit early to avoid the lines. Seats gets filled up pretty quickly.
Address to get here: 102 Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
I can't believe it took me as long as it did to finally make my way over here. My family and I decided to take a day trip up to Korea's Chinatown in Incheon. If you're ever in this area, you have to go to this jjajangmyun place I wrote about; it will change your world. Also, walk around this small town and go find the red bean dessert pictured below. Since they make this on the spot, you'll get to take a bite out of a fresh, steaming hot, red bean bun. There might be people waiting in line, I waited about 30 minutes, but it was worth it.
I'm so incredibly excited to share this post with you. Out of all the jjajangmyun places I've been to, this is one of the best places I've ever been to. Right in the heart of Chinatown, Incheon, Korea, if you're ever in the area, make sure you come here for the jjajangmyun! We also ordered the pork tangsooyook and fried dumplings all of which I highly recommend.
Need directions? Click here.
There's something so attractive about the SamCheon-Dong Village that always makes me want to go back and visit this place. A lot of tourists usually visits the neighboring Bukchon Hanok Village, which has a lot of old traditional Korean homes and feel. I love getting lost in this neighborhood. They also have a two of my favorite restaurants: a sujebi and a red bean porridge place.
Literally, that's the direct translation of this restaurant: Seoul's Second Best Shop (link here for directions) and they have the best red bean soup, aka "danpatjuk". The space is really small, so you'll be getting cozy with the friends you go with and others eating here too. It's not a place you'll want to sit around for hours, but rather, a place where you go in, eat, and leave; but trust me when I say this, they have great - no, amazing, danpatjuk, so it will be worth the wait and coziness.
Pub at night, restaurant during the day.
They also have a brunch menu.
This placed had a bit of a quirkiness ambiance that I liked.
Whenever I eat out with friends or family, I try to avoid looking at my phone as much as possible to enjoy their company.
Thin pizza with a nice crunchy crust.
They had a few lunch set menu options. The one we ordered off of gave us the pizza, pasta, and a small salad (not pictured).
Red Sauce Pasta with mozzarella balls. This was part of their lunch set menu.
Hamburger, with eggs, rice, tater totts, and a side of salad.
The lettuce and salmon was fresh and I loved the pineapple addition, it gave it a refreshing taste.
Overall, I liked the chill-quirky, but not overly quirky, ambiance of this restaurant. The food was good, the price was great, and this restaurant was forgiving with their portion size -- I mean look at that hamburger dish from their brunch menu! We probably didn't need to order the extra salmon salad, but my mom didn't know the lunch set menu was for two instead of one, but don't worry, we were able to finish everything and didn't leave any food to waste.
This is a place I definitely would visit again.
My grandma kept talking about how there's a great bibimbap with crab meat-place, so we decided to stop by MooHwaJam for lunch. Let's start.
Update: this restaurant is now closed.
Live and healthy right in front of your eyes too.
With soft warm tofu that melts in your mouth.
Just your typical complimentary Korean side dishes.
A simple dish but always a good one.
Just look at all that color, I was excited to finally dig in to this dish.
Unlike your traditional bibimbap dishes, the rice came on the side, so you could control how much rice you wanted to add.
Because this dish didn't taste like your traditional bibimbap, it took me a while to formulate my thoughts and figure out whether I liked it or not, but once I got rid of the thought that this dish isn't supposed to taste like your warm traditional bibimbap, the more I enjoyed and craved each bite for more.
They weren't shy with their portions and I loved how fresh every ingredient was.
Overall, the ingredients they used was incredibly fresh, so I see why my grandma wouldn't stop raving about this place. Highly recommended if you're looking for a not so traditional Korean bibimbap and if you like crabs.
There's something so attractive about bookstores and libraries. I'm sad I didn't get to spend a lot of time exploring all the different book selections but I loved how they set up this place.
There were a lot of people stoping by to take photos (myself included), and then leaving shortly after. You'll find a few desks on the second floor and on the bottom level too, but there didn't seem to be an abundance of space like you would see in a typical library. There's also a lot of people walking in and out, so this place was fairly noisy, so if you're looking to get some studying done here, best of luck.
I was bummed I couldn't visit the Mr. Holme's Bakehouse when I was in SF last summer, so when I found out they opened up a shop in Korea, I knew I had to stat the hype was about.
Let's get started.
We came here during the weekday, so the place was fairly quiet. I also appreciated how they had a lot of open space and natural light entering the building.
They had two flavors: Vanilla & Hazelnut Brioche Donuts. We ended up getting the vanilla.
I can't remember the different flavors they had, but we got the red bean cruffin, which I highly recommend.
Some drinks to complement all the sweets.
This place is known for their Cruffin, so make sure you order one when you stop by. I highly recommend the red bean cruffin for those red bean fans.
Need directions? Click here.
One thing I love about Korea is how there's an endless list of cafes you can explore. They have everything from book/study cafes, cat/dog cafes, themed cafes, etc. I wanted to go somewhere that was fairly quiet after lunch, but still had a nice ambiance, so Gabie in Hongdae was the perfect fit.
I appreciated the calm atmosphere and being surrounded by books. The cafe gave a nice studious-vibe. If I was a student living in this area, I think this is one cafe I would hit up. I also believe this place is opened 24 hours, so it would be perfect for those who are notorious all-nighters.
First day back in my motherland, Seoul, and I wake up to all this snow. This is one of the many reasons why winter is one of my favorite season. I was debating whether I should post the cropped photo to hide the buildings, cars, and playground in the back, but thought I'd post the non-cropped photos instead. Welcome to my backyard and make sure you stay tuned for more photos of my trip to Korea!
Hello!
I'm currently in Korea for a quick trip and as I was roaming around meyong-dong, I came across this cute store: Stylenanda. Each floor had a different theme. The first was a hotel lobby, then there was a bathroom, dressing room, laundry, pool, and a cafe. This place is ridiculous but I'm glad I walked in to snap a few photos. See below!
This place covered everything from your basic t-shirts, accessories, swim gear, to cosmetics. I didn't end up buying anything but am glad I stepped inside to take a few photos.
Whenever I'm craving Italian food in Korea, I always seem to find myself back in this restaurant. I think it also helps that I love their interior design, which you'll see in my photos below, and love stopping by their bakery downstairs afterwards to pick up some bread and pastries.
I liked the clams in this dish and thought overall this was a little too sweet for me, but I know Korean food tends to lean more on the sweet side.
I liked how thin this crust was, which works well with the thick cheese. The dough is soft, so don't expect a 'crunch' when you take a bite into the crust.
I felt like the mushroom taste was just perfect enough with the creamy white sauce before it would've started to feel too rich. Fun fact: they had peas in the pasta, which I thought was an interesting addition.
I always tell myself I'll order this dish the next time I come here but always get distracted by the creamy white pastas. I love this dish and liked how the pasta was a little spicy.
That's all for now from Passion 5's Vera Pizza. If you haven't already, you should definitely stop by this lovely place.
This post is a little way overdue but better late than never? This past winter, my family members and I ate at Jung Sik Dang in Korea, although they do have a restaurant in New York, and I fell in love. I've been craving their food ever since, but this also might be because I follow them on Instagram. Hi, Mom, if you're reading this, can we go back?
I'll let the photos do the talking.
This isn't your typical Korean cuisine and I love the spin chef Jung Sik Yim took. 10 out of 10 out of 10.
Itaewon: The place you'll find the most foreigners in Korea and some good fusion/international food; the food, of course, still catering towards the Korean tastebuds.
I visit Itaewon a lot whenever I come to Korea, but for some reason, I never thought to venture out to all the hidden restaurants. I always stuck to my two to three favorite places and would call it a day, but this time was different. This time, instead of going to Hongdae or Gangnam to meet up with friends, I decided to go to Itaewon instead, and oh boy am I glad that I did. If you're ever in the mood for international food, Itaewon is your place to go.
See below for some yummy photos I captured.
