If there is one thing my neighbourhood Gyeongridan is desperately in need of it’s more craft beer. Despite the hood being riddled with bars and breweries it was clearly not enough so Namsan Chemistry opened their doors not a mere week ago. (more…)
After 3 years of living in HBC, a change was in order so me and The Fat Boyfriend have decided to move to the other side of the tracks to Gyeongridan. After a hard day’s work of hauling boxes I wasn’t really in the cooking mood, so one of my best buddies popped over and took us out for a much needed burger. Since it was right around the corned we figured we would check out one of the ever new restaurants Soul Truck.
Twice a year the best neighbourhood in Korea plays host to the event of the season, the HBC fest. All the local bars and restaurants have dozens of bands and singers playing sets. Each venue has its own schedule which you can find here, This year’s Festival is on from Friday May 22nd – Sunday May 24th! (more…)
Being a Brit I take my fish and chips very seriously. It’s one of the foods I hanker after the most. For me there is nothing more thrilling than the car ride home with a hot paper package upon your lap scalding your legs while the smell of salt and vinegar fills the air. The wait to get home just makes ripping into those fish and chips even better.
Eating good healthy foods is something I have become very passionate about since I lost a substantial amount of weight last year. It’s not something I do 24-7, as I still enjoy fried foods far too much for that to ever happen, but I try to eat as wholesomely as possible for at least two meals a day which seems to balance out those times I get carried away and eat a whole pizza, cheesecake, or bucket of chicken. Since turning 30 I have certainly become more thoughtful about trying to give my body the nutrients it needs in able to function properly. As I have mentioned before I try to follow a raw till 4 diet or make meals using 1 ingredient healthy foods at least until dinner time, unless of course I’m hungover then all bets are off.
Finding new and cool places to eat is actually pretty easy these days, a walk around my neighborhood offers up a plethora of new options week in week out as more and more buildings are turned into eateries to feed the hordes of people visiting our hood. Last week I was invited by the owners to come and try the food at Calcotada in Gyeongridan. Located just up on the hill past the Police station, it’s hidden away from the crowds which I always find desirable in an eatery, ain’t nobody got time for queuing. (more…)
After the disappointing and tiny dinner we had eaten at Locos, Team Fat Girl roamed the streets of Gyeongridan looking for sustenance. We eventually stumbled across new kid on the block Meatballism. Now I’m not usually one for putting balls in my mouth, but with a rumbly tummy on the go a meat ball sub seemed just the ticket to fill us all up. (more…)
It seems like Loco is popular restaurant name in Korea these day, just last week I wrote about Gusto Loco Moco now it’s time for Locos BBQ. I walked past this place a few weeks ago, after a Sunday morning walk around the park (yes really, I went for a walk, I wasn’t lying on my sofa and vomiting following the exploits of the night before, which is my usual Sunday morning activity). Anyhow we were walking past and the smell of smoked meat was intoxicating, it was phenomenal. My nostrils demanded that I returned as soon as possible, which I did with a group of hungry Texan friends. (more…)
Every day in Itaewon another shop is lost and another restaurant or cafe pops up in it’s place. As a food blogger you think I would be thrilled about this as I literally never need to leave Itaewon again with all the new places that are opening. But sadly most of them are trying to cash in with new crowd of Koreans that are visiting our little neighbourhood. I’m a fan of quality rather quantity when it comes to restaurants but c’est la vie.
Luckily Aventino is a great addition to the neighbourhood. I have been craving gelato all summer long, so it was great to finally get some. Barely open a couple of weeks, they have a range of about 10 different flavours. Once I had revealed my food blogger status the owner insisted I tried them all. And of course I took him up on his offer, it would have been churlish not to.
After the round of samples, my clear favourites were the Lemon and Hazelnut. I was with The Fat Boyfriend so we decided to get two scoops (5,000) but I didn’t really think that lemon and hazelnut matched, so we went for the lemon and grapefruit.
The lemon flavour was incredible. More sorbet than gelato it reminded me of the granita you find in tiny cafes all over Italy. It had just the right balance of sourness. Sweet and zingy all at the same time, it really was perfection on the lemon dessert front. The Grapefruit sorbet was also very tasty. I’m not usually a fan of grapefruit as I find it too bitter, but since The Fat Boyfriend loves it, I decided to give it a go. It was darn tasty and complimented the lemon perfectly.
I also have to give big props to the Pistachio and the Stracciatella. When I was in Italy I practically ate a gelato a day and am in love with tiramisu gelato. So if they can get that on the menu I’ll be in heaven. They also have large to go containers so you can get a couple of pints to take home, which is just perfect for eating while you lie on the sofa and watch the new season of Project Runway.
Aventino is located at 567 Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul. To get there take a train to Noksapyeong station (line 6) and come out of exit 2. Walk straight until you reach the under pass, go through and take the stairs on the right. Walk straight past Trevia and Taco Chili Chili, until you reach Aventino, it’s just on the left before the post office. You can call them on 02-792-0567 for more details.
After going for a walk around Namsan park last Sunday, I stumbled across this place. Yes I went for a walk on Sunday morning, it’s shocking I know but I had to get out of the house. It was the end of the 5 days vacation and I had spent the entire day before dying of a hangover and gorging on junk food and if I hadn’t gotten out of the house I would have gone stir crazy. A Sunday morning walk would never usually be my cup of tea so please don’t judge me.
Anyhow we stumbled across Chunk of Cheese, usually I wouldn’t be caught dead on that hill. Not because I’m too cool for school, just that I generally tend to try and avoid hills. Chunk of cheese is, shockingly, a cheese shop. With over 80 different varieties of cheese they have a huge selection which rivals that of Shinsegae and the foreign food mart. Including some rather good English Cheddars.
I’m not sure it’s worth an out and out trip if you live miles away, but if you live around this neck of the woods it will save you going to Itaewon. It will also worth a peek if you are in the area for dinner. They have lots of anti pasti style things too like salami, olives, wine etc. So if you’re hosting a fancy dinner party or wine and cheese evening then this would be the place to go. Sadly I can’t afford to host wine and cheese parties, but I’d certainly like to. I hold out of date hummus and vodka cocktail nights instead. I’m sure they will catch on any day now.
If you want to visit them personally Chunk of Cheese is located at 31-1 Hoenamu-ro, Yongsan-gu. Or you can call them on 02-795-3079 if you want to inquire about a particular cheese. They are also on Y-not Takeout. So if you live locally, you can have your cheese delivered direct to your door, isn’t that amazing!
