Focus On…Whenever,Wherever

 Whenever or Wherever you are there comes a time where you must quell the primal feeling of hunger. The sensation of some primordial force begins slowly welling up in you and your thought process worsens.Voices from the bottomless pits of your stomach call out to the world. You may even display an emotion that we’re all too familiar with, H-A-N-G-R-Y. To travel abroad, is to experience the breadth of what another group of people does that sustains them. You witness elections, change of seasons but the gateway to another culture and people is food. 

    Prior to coming to Korea, I ate asian cuisine on occasion. My brother's go-to is fried rice with ribs. That’s probably a more Americanized version of Chinese food, while I will most likely opt in for some ramen which has Chinese origins but gained popularity in Japan in the late 19th century. In the states, my experience with Korean food was limited to K barbecue, bibimbap, and beef bulgogi. I wish I could say I’ve had it all while I’ve been here but again then I’ve only been here a month and I may be going to a certain Indian spot a little too much for their chicken tikka masala with garlic naan. 

    Traditional Korean food or hansik(han-sheek) often comes with your order of choice, rice, and an assortment of fermented and pickled vegetables. Kimchi is everywhere. It is a traditional side of fermented cabbage that you can have with rice, cooked meat, soup,etc. But being here, I haven’t had purely Korean food. I’ve had Korean/Chinese foods such as jajangmyeon, which is a noodle dish topped with a sweet bean sauce. I’ve also had some pretty good Japanese pork katsu with curry. 

Let me tell you that it never disappoints. I have been extremely pleased with my dining experience thus far. Earlier I mentioned Jyoti,an Indian restaurant that stole my heart and I think it might be the best Indian food I’ve had. Who would have thought that in coming to Korea I’d discover some mouth-watering Indian food. 

Contrary to a lot of things being salty in the west, a lot of foods here have an extra sweetness about them. For example, I’ve ordered a burger from Lotteria(fast food chain) and was surprised to bite into a sweet tasting bulgogi burger. It's good nonetheless, but it caught me off guard. This next part is a right of passage every foreigner in Korea must go through. I got the bright idea that I would order pizza and it would be just like it was at home. 

Then it arrived at my door and I was like finally.Let’s just say it went downhill in terms of experience when I discovered it had corn. Thus began my hunt for a New York-style pizza. When I found Gino’s located in Itaewon, and their branding included, “In Crust We Trust” I knew I was in the right place. I’ve been back three times already so that should tell you what I think about it.  

Do you have room for dessert? I know I do. When I visit new cities, I look for the “best” cookie place I can find. Well, because I love cookies. Obviously, the best is subjective but a place I really enjoy is TigerHootTime. It’s a small shop located in Hongdae and in my opinion has one of the best cookies I’ve had in Seoul thus far. 

Food has the power to bring people together, share culture, even tame primordial beasts that lay within the depths of our stomachs.I’ve tried a ton that I haven’t even mentioned. Maybe I’ll tell you the story of the squid I ate one day. Regardless, whenever or wherever you are, food is the access point by which we experience the world around us,just be open to trying things that might be unusual to your palette and you may just discover a new favorite of yours.