Korean Dining

Hello again. Or as Koreans would say: anyangseyo (or something kinda similar, my Korean vocabulary is still at the level of a newborn).

Today I will talk about Korean food. As I’ve mentioned previously, groceries are really expensive here. Though the throng of Scandinavian students here begs to differ, Seoul is not a city where you will save money on food. However, it is relatively cheap to go out to eat, so my inability to cook isn’t that costly. Or that’s what I keep telling myself at least.

Expensive groceries and tiny stores = Martin won't cook much

A couple things about Korean dining. Koreans love food. However, if you think tabasco sauce is spicy, and you like to eat salad for lunch, Korea is not a place for you. I have yet to see lettuce anywhere in Seoul. Or green stuff in general.  Also, I think there’s a law that Korean food doesn’t count as food unless it sets your organs on fire. It consists mostly of meat marinated in the third circle of hell and unspecified sides that resemble vegetables, but are usually just as spicy. Every restaurant gives you free water but always in these tiny cups just to make me look foolish when I spend most of the meal just refilling my tiny cup with water.

Usually I have no idea what I'm eating, but at least in most restaurants you cook the food on your table

You can't order alcohol unless you order food. Since I am used to calculate the cost of food in the number of beers I could get instead, this infuriates me but also gives me a good excuse for my alcoholism. I no longer go out to drink, instead I go out to dine! Yes, I did drink a couple of bottles of soju but that was just to complement the plate of fries I had to order.

At least now I know that cafeteria food is universally not good anywhere

The thing that got me though was the way people looked at me when I poured a drink for myself. Everyone was staring me down like I was an animal. First I thought it was because of my obvious alcohol problem, but later I found out that you aren't supposed to pour for yourself but only pour alcohol to other people. So if you want a drink, you pour to a person who has an empty-ish glass and then you just pray to god he notices your generosity and pours you some back. Usually they do, but sometimes you have to start sighing heavily and look exasperatedly in your cup for a while before they take pity on you. Anyway to end it all, here is a picture of the best thing about Korea - Korean barbecue, where you often eat as much meat as you can for a fairly reasonable price:

Korean barbecue - one of the best things in Korea