Seoul Winter '17 - Ep. 01 - Gukbap Dinner with Soo Zee & Leigh

In 2017, I decided to close my year in my favorite city. And so, on the last week of December, I arrived at Incheon International Airport on a cold clear winter morning and took the airport bus to the city. This was my fifth trip to Seoul this year and by now, the city almost feels like (a second) home to me.

First stop of the day was the hotel. Opted to stay at LOTTE City Hotel Guro (롯데시티호텔 구로) since I’ve had a pretty packed year of traveling and wanted to stay somewhere comfortable and familiar, especially during Seoul’s cold winter. Plus I’ve stayed here before and had a wonderful time during my previous visits so I came back again this time around.

The check-in process was a breeze. I was assisted by the same person who checked me in on my previous trip and she remembered me. That’s always a plus on my book. Since I arrived way earlier than the check-in time, I left my luggages with the receptionist and went to get some food.

Right next to the hotel is Guro G-Valley Plaza (구로G밸리비즈플라자), a medium sized shopping center with various tenants from restaurants, cafes, convenient stores and even doctor’s clinics and pharmacies. My first meal every time I’m back in Seoul is usually soup and rice. It’s a comfort food for me, especially after a red-eye flight with restless sleep on the plane. Something warm and hearty always made me feel better after. Plus it’s perfect with the cold weather outside.

I went to Han Chon Seolleongtang (한촌설렁탕 구로지밸리몰점) at Guro G-Valley Plaza to get exactly that. I ordered their Seolleongtang (설렁탕) set which comes with white rice and three banchans. It’s a simple warm meal but after finishing the whole bowl of thinly slice beef and milky broth, I felt a little more alive than I was before.

After lunch, I still have some time to kill so I went to Läderach (레더라) to get some dessert. Läderach is a Swiss chocolate and confectionary manufacturer and they have a couple of cafes open in Seoul. Soo Zee was the one who actually introduced me to the place. She took me here on one of our hangout session last spring because she likes their chocolate and after I tried it, I agree with her. I ordered their Swiss Classic Milk (스위스클래식 밀크) and sat there reading while waiting for my check-in time.

An hour or so later, I finally checked into my room. The room is spacious and clean, just like how I remembered it from my previous trips. The only difference this time was that they gave me complimentary wine and chocolate for my stay, which was a nice touch. I also requested for a microwave to be put in my room and they also accommodated my request which I really appreciate.

After I freshened up and rested for a bit, I headed out again in the late afternoon to meet up with Soo Zee and Leigh for dinner. Soo Zee and Leigh are also fans of gukbap (hot soup with rice) (국밥) and so when they suggested getting gukbap for dinner, (even though I just had rice and soup earlier today) I immediately agreed to it.

They took me to Ban Ryong San (반룡산), a popular gukbap restaurant near Seolleung station (선릉역). The name of the place is actually inspired by the name of a mountain near Hamheung, a city in North Korea, which is the hometown of the mother of the owner of the restaurant. The place wasn’t too big but it was pretty packed when we were there. There were quite a number of ahjussis eating at the place too which is always a good sign (it usually means the food is good if it’s popular among the older crowd).

We ordered their Garit Gukbap (가릿국밥), which apparently is a Hamheung specialty, and Wang Mandu (왕만두). Their Wang Mandu was, as the name suggest, huge and flavorful. Their Garit Gukbap comes with white rice that’s already put inside the soup, long shredded beef, white tofu, congealed ox blood, thinly-sliced egg crepe, and green onions. The broth is made from beef ribs and brisket. It’s the kind of broth that’s really flavorful and you don’t have to add anything into it to enjoy the dish. We really liked it and finished the whole thing until there’s no soup left in our bowls.

After dinner, we headed back together since we’re all going to the same direction. Even though we finished dinner quite late and rush hour suppose to have passed by now, we found ourselves (or maybe it was just me) getting squished in between people who was going back home the same time we did on the subway. Leigh didn’t really have a problem standing her ground since she was still leisurely holding her monitor while taking a call (talking about multitasking at its best) and so did Soo Zee. I was okay the first couple of stops but then more people came into the car and I was slowly getting squished by the people standing around me. At some point Soo Zee took a picture of me in my squished state because she found it funny (I do too after I saw the picture).

And that’s pretty much concluded my first day back in Seoul.

Hotel:

LOTTE City Hotel Guro • (롯데시티호텔 구로)
Address: 서울 구로구 디지털로 300 지밸리비즈플라자

Places:

Guro G-Valley Plaza • 구로G밸리비즈플라자
Address: 서울 구로구 디지털로 300

Restaurants:

Han Chon Seolleongtang • 한촌설렁탕 구로지밸리몰점
Address: 서울 구로구 디지털로 300 2층
Telephone: 02-6344-3950
Hours: Everyday 10:00-22:00

Ban Ryong San • 반룡산
Address: 서울 강남구 테헤란로78길 26 1층
Telephone: 02-3446-8966
Hours: Everyday 11:00-22:00

Cafes:

Läderach • 레더라
Note: Guro location is now closed. They have two other locations in Seoul.

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Seoul Spring '17 - Ep. 15 - Went for a ₩5,000 Korean Meal

Mar had a workshop today and it basically took the entire first half of our day. When we came back from the workshop, it was during mid-afternoon and we both were pretty spent. She was tired from learning all the new stuff from the workshop and I was tired from translating the stuff she was learning during the workshop. So, we decided to have a break/nap time before going out again for dinner.

After Mar woke up from her nap, we went out to look around the restaurants around the neighborhood. We weren’t really sure what we want to have for dinner to be honest but when we passed by this one restaurant that has meals with rice, soup and banchan (백반) on their menu, we wanted to try it. Well, I’m always down for eating rice and soup and Mar wanted to try it mainly because of the cheap price of the meal. I mean, getting all the things pictured on the banner in front of the restaurant for just ₩5,000 (≈$4) per person is a pretty good deal.

So we went in and was eager to order and eat (especially since we haven’t had any proper lunch yet and it was like 5 pm in the afternoon, so we’re pretty hungry). But then when we went in, nobody was there. The lights and TV were on and everything but not one person was in sight. We even waited for 5 minutes or so hoping that the owner or the server of the restaurant would appear but nobody showed up. So after a while, we left and decided to look for another place to eat.

Mar was suggesting that we should go get Naengmyeon (냉면) near the restaurant we went to with our friends the first day we were here. But neither of us remembered what the restaurant name was and how to get there. After walking around for a while and saw nothing that really interest us, we decided to go back to the first restaurant and try our luck the second time. And what do you know. This time, the owner was inside and we can finally have our meal.

We ordered 2 servings of the sundubu (순두부찌개) and they came with two bowls of rice, two pieces of fried fish and 12 different banchan that you can ask for more if you want seconds. The ahjumma gave us free fried eggs too which was really nice of her. We also got to talk with her for a bit when we were having our meal. She was wondering what are foreigners like us doing in this neighborhood since the area is not exactly a tourist spot. I told her that we’re visiting our friends who live around here and she nodded in understanding at that.

Anyway, for ₩5,000, I’d say this was a pretty good meal. The food tasted like a home-cooked meal for sure and it was really fulfilling. We even ended up walking around for a while after our meal because we were so stuffed before finally going back home.

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Seoul Spring '17 - Ep. 14 - Easter Sunday at Garosugil

We had a pretty chill day at Garosugil for Easter Sunday. We went for Sunday service and then decided to just hang out at Basilur, a cafe that sold mainly teas and desserts. It's actually one of my favorite spot in Garosugil because their milk teas and desserts were good. The cafe was also pretty spacious and occupied the second and third floor of a building with big windows that overlook the intersection in front of the Village 11 Factory shop. It's like the perfect spot for afternoon tea while you people watch. (Sadly the place has now closed due to the pandemic.)

After the sun has set, we made our way back to the subway station. We stopped by a kimbap place to buy some to take away for our dinner and then finally headed home.

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Seoul Spring '17 - Ep. 13 - Samcheongdong & Birthday Surprise

Travel Vertical Vlog

The first stop of our Samcheongdong (삼청동) exploration the next day was Milkcow In Boots, a bread shop that seemed to be popular at the time. The picture of their bread frequently popped up on my Instagram so we decided to check the place out since we happened to pass it by. There was already a line forming in front of the shop and we joined in to wait for our turn. We bought two of their cube bread and a bottle of milk. They also gave us mini cube bread as freebies which Mar immediately tried and said it was just alright (see the vlog for her reaction). And I have to agree with her. I also think it was just alright after I tried the bread when we got home. Not really worth they hype.

After the bread shop, we walked around the area and stopped by a flower stall and decided to buy a small bouquet of flowers for Eun-gyo’s unnie because it was her birthday. We were planning to surprise her with a cake when she gets home from work so birthday cake was the other thing on the list that we needed to buy. Before that could happen though, we passed by Granhand on our way back to the subway station and with Mar being a fan of all things scent related, we naturally stopped by.

Granhand is probably one of my favorite perfume store. They have a wide selection of nice scents and all their stores and products are well-designed. The branch we visited was Granhand Sogyeok (그랑핸드 소격), a small store in one of Samcheongdong’s alleyways. Mar ended up purchasing a bottle of perfume and got her name stamped on the bottle. It’s a complimentary service that they have for customers who want to customize the label of their newly purchased perfume.

After the perfume shopping is done, we encountered a couple of buskers who were singing on the side of the road. I always feel that the buskers at different neighborhoods in Seoul sing or cover different genres of music. While the performances in Hongdae are more well known for its K-pop influence and the ones in Sinchon tend to be on the pop acoustic ballad side (imho), British rock seemed to be the theme in Samcheongdong judging from the ones we encountered tonight. The first singer we saw was singing Sting’s ‘Shape of My Heart’ and the second singer was singing Coldplay’s ‘In My Place’ and ‘The Scientist’. In a sense, it’s nice because you feel, hear and experience different vibes in every neighborhood.

We finally stopped Paris Croissant (파리크라상) to buy the birthday cake for Eun-gyo unnie’s surprise birthday celebration later that night. We were looking at the cake selections on display while discussing in Indonesian which one we should get for her. Suddenly, from behind the counter somebody said, ‘This cake is pretty popular amongst the customers.’ in Indonesian. Of course both of us were super surprised. Not because we met another fellow Indonesian (there were plenty of Indonesian tourists at the time in Seoul), but because we met a fellow Indonesian who works at a Korean store. Even when I was living in Seoul, I don‘t think I’ve ever met an Indonesian who works at a Korean company.

Following her recommendation, we settled on the Strawberry Crepe (딸기 크레이프). She helped us out with our order and we ended up chatting for a bit before I asked her for her Kakao info, suggesting we should hang out sometimes. We did end up hanging out together during my next trip to Seoul and found out that we actually have mutual friends back home in Jakarta. I also later found out that the story of our first encounter at Paris Croissant somehow ended up circulating amongst her coworkers. But instead of the actual incident, the story evolved to another scenario where a guy customer (I guess my short hair could be the reason for the false assumption) asked for her for her contact info because he’s interested in her. It’s so funny and we had a good laugh about it. Anyway, we ended up becoming friends and I hung out with her every time I’m in town, and we still do until today. And that’s the story how I met my friend Winny. If you’ve been following me on Instagram, you’re probably familiar with her face from my instastories.

After we got home, we quickly set up the cake, candles and cameras and get ready to surprise Eun-gyo unnie when she got home. I was constantly checking my Kakao because Deok-chun oppa was going to text me when they’re close by so we can match the timing. Don’t know why, but both of us were ridiculously nervous for no apparent reason when that text came in and they were about to arrive. But anyway, she came home and we immediately sang (slightly off tune) ‘Happy Birthday’ to her when she walked in. Candles were blown, flowers were given, cake was cut and she was thoroughly surprised and didn’t suspect a thing. So the surprise was a success.

Eun-sa unnie later came over and we ordered jjajangmyeong (짜장면) and Nene Chicken (네네치킨) delivery for our super late dinner/supper birthday celebration. And of course we had the birthday cake for desserts afterwards. It was a fun night and Happy Birthday Eun-gyo unnie! :)

Places:

Granhand Sogyeok • 그랑핸드 소격
Address: 서울 종로구 율곡로3길 69
Telephone: 02-333-6525
Hours: Sunday -Thursday 11:30-20:30 | Friday & Saturday 12:00-21:00
Instagram: @granhand_official

Update:
Milkcow In Boots has now closed permanently.

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Seoul Spring '17 - Ep. 12 - Night Hangout in Sinchon

Travel Vertical Vlog

After staying up really late last night, Mar and I slept in the next day and woke up around lunch time. It was Eun-gyo unnie’s day off and she has cooked lunch for us. The menu was Korean purple rice (흑미밥) with soybean paste stew (된장찌개), omelette, some leftover curry and salad, and kimchi and seaweed for the banchan. Mar also cooked a cup of Jin Ramyeon because she was craving it. Eating a home-cooked meal is always special to me. I don’t really cook so even when I was living in Seoul, I usually just eat out or do take-outs. And as a tourist, unless you’re staying at an Airbnb that gives you the option of sharing the property with your host and meals are included in your stay, home-cooked meal is probably not an option either. So every time my friends cook for me, it always feels like a special experience. And this is not strictly speaking only when I’m in Seoul actually. It applies to wherever my friends are since most of them live in different parts of the world.

By the time we’re done getting ready to go out, it’s already dinner time. Our plan that night was just to meet up with Ken in Sinchon. He texted me earlier that week saying that he’s going to be in Seoul and asked if I want to meet up. So we planned to meet up over dinner before he had to head back home. What’s funny though, when we arrived at the red pipe where we agreed to meet, I immediately laughed out loud when I saw him walking over. For some odd reason, we ended up wearing the same color outfit that day. Green jacket, black pants, black backpack and even our shoes were matching! It was funny because we totally didn’t plan this at all. We had a good laugh about it before I asked Mar to take a picture of us for memories.

Afterwards, we went to Izawa for dinner and to catch up. Mar ordered their Steak Don (스테이시동) this time because she already tried their Gyukatsu (규카츠) the last time we were there and Ken and I ordered the Gyukatsu (규카츠). It was a good fulfilling meal. Ken left after we finished dinner and we decided to walked around for a bit. Since it’s a Friday, there were more people in Sinchon. There were also a lot of buskers who occupied different spots in the area so it’s fun to just walk around and watch the performances. The first guy we watched was a frequent performer in Sinchon who’s standing at his usual spot near the subway station exit jamming with his guitar. I’ve seen him for a good couple of years now, usually by himself. But there were times where he was performing with his friends who played the guitar and saxophones. They were good. One of the unique thing about this guy is he looks western right? He’d usually start singing English songs and when he greet the audience, he would speak in fluent Korean, earning shocked gasps from the crowd who’s not familiar with him. I was amongst those people too when I first watched him. Really wasn’t expecting him to be that good in speaking Korean but you can never judge a book by its cover right?

The second performance that we watched was in front of the red pipe in front of U-plex. Two guys were singing one of South Korea’s spring anthem, ‘What the Spring’ by 10cm, a song that you probably hear a lot if you’re in South Korea during spring. It’s like one of the official soundtrack for spring season. The other one being ‘Cherry Blossom Ending’ by Busker Busker I would say. What’s funny about it though, unlike ‘Cherry Blossom Ending’ where the lyrics are talking about walking together with your significant other under the scattering cherry blossom petals, ‘What the Spring’ actually takes playful jabs on couples who like the spring season (because I guess it’s like the perfect dating season) from a single person’s perspective. The two songs are the total opposite, but they both have very spring-like melodies. The two guys who were singing sounded pretty good, even interacting and joking around with the a couple in the audience, relaying the sentiment of the song in a playful way (watch their performance on the vlog).

We then walked around some more and passed by a shop that has claw machines inside. Of course we ended up going in because Mar wanted to try her luck again with these machines. 15 minutes and many coins later, she finally gave up after her multiple failed attempts at trying to win a stuffed doll. It was fun watching her try though. I had a good laugh. Before we headed home, we stopped by Gimgane (김가네), a chain gimbap place and bought some to take home because Mar was once again craving gimbap, even after the meal we had earlier. She ended up ordering Spicy Anchovy Gimbap (멸추김밥) to try because we never had one before. Turns out it was good. And that’s how we ended our Friday night.

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