Photo Essay: Conference Eating in Seoul
When I wasn’t presenting at my conference in Seoul, we were eating, eating, eating! I learned that it is pretty typical to have a table covered entirely with food and drinks until there’s literally no space left so dishes started piling upon each other! It’s definitely the best way to eat in my opinion! Rather than writing a detailed post about each of the dishes I ate, I’ll showcase the food itself by displaying the photographs I took with little captions. Everyone was wondering why I was so intent on taking pictures of food, but when I’m in a new place and trying new foods, it’s just too hard to resist. This will probably be my last post on eating in Seoul, so I’ll end it with lots of pictures!
Day 1 – Dinner at the Seoul National University Hoam House
Our private room!
![I ordered the top option: 한식 스페실 메뉴 [han shik special menu]. It comes with: "seasoned with shrimp, abalone, pear, chestnut," "Today's fried food," "Grilled minced rib," "Grilled dried yellowtail fish," "Beef (brisket) and soy bean past stew and rice," and "Fruits."](https://flavorboulevard.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/1000796_10151676748575733_1148624190_n.jpg)
I ordered the top option: 한식 스페실 메뉴 [han shik special menu]. It comes with: “seasoned with shrimp, abalone, pear, chestnut,” “Today’s fried food,” “Grilled minced rib,” “Grilled dried yellowtail fish,” “Beef (brisket) and soy bean past stew and rice,” and “Fruits.”
Beautiful silverware! I found myself taking a lot of pictures of silverware.
First course: seasoned with shrimp, abalone, pear, and chestnut. Interesting combo of flavors and textures – chewy and crunchy and each bite had a hint of the ocean. It was interesting since I’ve never tasted these flavors together before!
“Today’s fried food.” This was one of the best pieces of fish I have eaten in Seoul AND in general. The flesh was so flaky and tasty and the skin was perfectly crunchy. There were a lot of bones, but I didn’t mind digging around because the meat was just that good. The highlight of the meal for me!
!["Grilled minced rib." I'm not sure why these burger-type patties are popular at 한식 [han shik] restaurants, which serve multi-course Korean food. I went out to dinner with some friends the weekend before the conference and was also served a beef patty as part of the set meal. This meat was super dry and lacking in flavor. Imagine an overcooked burger patty and this is unfortunately what this dish tasted like.](https://flavorboulevard.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/1017067_10151676749815733_1150460433_n.jpg)
“Grilled minced rib.” I’m not sure why these burger-type patties are popular at 한식 [han shik] restaurants, which serve multi-course Korean food. I went out to dinner with some friends the weekend before the conference and was also served a beef patty as part of the set meal. This meat was super dry and lacking in flavor. Imagine an overcooked burger patty and this is unfortunately what this dish tasted like.
Grilled dried yellowtail fish. Oh boy…what the menu describes as “dried” is correct. This fish was DRY. Such a disappointment compared to the first fish course! It was cooked to death to the point that it was nearly inedible.
“Beef (brisket) and soy bean paste stew and rice.” It is customary to end these set course meals with stew and rice, rather than eating rice alongside the meal. This was an okay doenjang jjigae…not good, not too great.
- Rice!
Day 2 – Lunch at the top of Seoul National University
Walking up a giant hill and so many stairs in Seoul’s hot and humid weather while wearing conference clothes was quite the challenge, but the food at the top was worth it!
I don’t remember the name of the restaurant we ended up at, but I took a picture through the doors. It seemed like it was at the highest spot on the SNU campus!
Banquet hall! (And air conditioning as well.)
I didn’t go for a multi-course menu, but looks like no matter what there are always banchan and appetizers! I love it! One of the banchan was this salad…nothing fancy, just a salad.
More banchan! On the top (from left to right): shellfish (abalone? clam? not sure…), kimchi, and pickled beansprouts. On the front left, tuna – delicious. On the right right, jap chae (noodles), also delicious.
I was debating whether or not I should get kalbi or bulgogi, but I realized that I haven’t yet had bibimbap in Seoul yet! So when I saw the doenjang bibimbap on the menu, I couldn’t resist! This is quite possibly the best bibimbap I’ve ever tasted – the greens were so fresh and delicate and light! But what really made this great was the doenjang paste…
The doenjang bibimbap came with miso soup too (doenjang is made from soybean paste and it tastes similar to miso). This doenjang paste had little pieces of abalone in it, which gave it a more complex salty flavor than regular doenjang. I could have probably eaten an entire tub of this, but I just cleaned my plate instead. It was the perfect entree to eat before a presentation: filling yet didn’t make me feel so grossly stuffed that I’ll feel lethargic.
![I think this was a type of 수정과 [su jong gwa] since the predominant taste was that of cinnamon. I'm not sure why or how it got so pink though! It was a nice and refreshing palate cleanser and end to the meal!](https://flavorboulevard.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/190033_10151676757280733_147989785_n.jpg)
I think this was a type of 수정과 [su jong gwa] since the predominant taste was that of cinnamon. I’m not sure why or how it got so pink! It was a nice and refreshing palate cleanser and end to the meal though!
Unfortunately I do not remember the name of the restaurant that we ended up eating it, but after a long day of conference presentations, I was definitely excited for food! And there ended up being so much food, I could barely keep track of it all. Literally, dishes were piled on top of dishes because there wasn’t enough space for everything!
The table…we ended up moving to a different room because this one wasn’t big enough, but the table settings and table looked similar enough!
And then the food began and never stopped coming. Jap chae – delicious!
I intended to only take a picture of the salad, but didn’t want to reach across the table since I was already getting funny looks for snapping photos of food! I didn’t end up eating this salad but I can’t imagine that I would have missed anything.
I didn’t get a chance to ask about a lot of the food, so unfortunately I can’t identify everything accurate. The foreground was some type of seafood – oysters maybe? The background is a kimchi!
One of my favorites!!! Pumpkin with jujubes…so sweet and perfectly cooked. I think I ate more of my share of these…I couldn’t get enough of the pumpkins/squashes that I ate while in Seoul!
Broccoli with a gochujang dipping sauce
Fermented skate (홍어 hong uh) with pork belly (삼겹살 samgyeopsal) and kimchi. I had no idea what this was at the time so I just ate it without any hesitation! A few of the other Korean graduate students from UC Berkeley told us that fermented skate is one of the dishes where your family either eats it or is repulsed by it. Since I was coming in with a clean slate, I have to say that it didn’t taste so bad. I’ve never had fermented fish before and with the pork belly and super old kimchi, the taste isn’t quite as strong as I would have thought it to be. On its own though…it’s not that bad either but the aftertaste becomes super pronounced. My mouth became numb (not in a bad way but like I ate an entire stick of mint candy) and that sensation of cooling numbness stuck in my mouth for a while. I definitely would eat it again though!
A close-up of the unidentified seafood dish. Anyone have any idea what this is?
Fried mushrooms. A little oily but super delicious!
Black sesame porridge – more savory than sweet. We each got our own individual bowl. I love black sesame so I enjoyed this a lot!
Sweet sticky rice! As for what’s in the bowl in front, it’s soju!
Anchovies! These are so addicting and yummy…another one of my favorites. I’ve had some chefs describe them as “fries with eyes.”
Another variety of kimchi!
Bulgogi soup. I also ate way more than my fair share of this dish also! The beef itself was delicious, but the broth was so rich and flavorful that I kept on going back for more of the broth! It was meaty, sweet, and savory – the perfect combination of flavors! Definitely one of the best-tasting dishes at this restaurant!
Another type of soup…but I can’t really recall what specifically this is.
Another one of my favorites! Potatoes – sweet and starchy, the best. I did restrain myself with this and only took one, but I wanted to eat all of them and more!
More kimchi! You can never have enough kimchi!
I don’t know what type of fish this was, but it was dry (in a good way) and bony (in a not so good way). I’ve gotten pretty good at eating bony fish while I was in Korea, but I think I ended up eating more bones than meat with this fish…The few pieces of meat that I was able to successfully extract though were delicious!
So much food on the table~
Sashimi
Octopi (the tentacles were not still moving!)
Another type of fish!
Steamed egg…another one of my favorites! So good – I kept on eating more of my fair share of this dish too…
…And more fish! I love fish so I was definitely having the time of my life during this meal. And maybe the raspberry wine and soju and makgeolli helped with that too…
So. Much. Food.
The meal always ends with soup and rice. This is doenjang jjigae (bean paste soup).
…and the accompanying rice. (With raspberry wine in the background)
Of course there is still dessert! 식계 (shikkye) Rice punch! I’m not really a fan of this and I was so stuffed so I only had a little bit.
…And some sujeonggwa (cinnamon punch 수정과). Yum – the perfect refreshing end to the meal!
Overall, I had an amazing time in Seoul and I definitely took advantage of eating as much as I could! The conference eating was super nice and I definitely hope that I get a chance to go back to South Korea soon not only for research/academic purposes, but to eat!
I like this web site so much, saved to favorites.
1I simply could not depart your site prior to suggesting that I really loved the usual information a person supply for your guests? Is going to be again ceaselessly in order to check out new posts
2There is perceptibly a lot to know about this. I assume you made various good points in features also.
3I really like what you guys are up too. This type of clever work and reporting! Keep up the awesome works guys I’ve added you guys to my personal blogroll.
4I truly appreciate this post. I have been looking everywhere for this! Thank goodness I found it on Bing. You’ve made my day! Thank you again
5You have remarked very interesting details! ps nice web site. “I hate music, especially when it’s played.” by Jimmy Durante.
6You are my aspiration, I possess few blogs and often run out from to post : (.
7This is a very good tips especially to those new to blogosphere, brief and accurate information… Thanks for sharing this one. A must read article.
8I have been exploring for a little for any high-quality articles or blog posts on this kind of area . Exploring in Yahoo I at last stumbled upon this website. Reading this information So i’m happy to convey that I have a very good uncanny feeling I discovered exactly what I needed. I most certainly will make sure to don’t forget this web site and give it a look regularly.
9I like this post, enjoyed this one thanks for putting up.
10Hello there! This post couldn’t be written any better! Reading this post reminds me of my good old room mate! He always kept talking about this. I will forward this page to him. Pretty sure he will have a good read. Thanks for sharing!
11Hi my friend! I wish to say that this article is awesome, nice written and include almost all vital infos. I would like to see more posts like this.
12I’ll immediately take hold of your rss feed as I can not find your email subscription link or e-newsletter service. Do you have any? Kindly permit me recognise in order that I could subscribe. Thanks.
13We’re a group of volunteers and opening a new scheme in our community. Your website provided us with valuable info to work on. You have done a formidable job and our entire community will be thankful to you.
14I loved as much as you will receive carried out right here. The sketch is attractive, your authored material stylish. nonetheless, you command get got an edginess over that you wish be delivering the following. unwell unquestionably come further formerly again since exactly the same nearly very often inside case you shield this increase.
15I really enjoy studying on this website , it has fantastic posts. “Dream no small dreams. They have no power to stir the souls of men.” by Victor Hugo.
16wonderful points altogether, you just gained a new reader. What would you recommend in regards to your post that you made some days ago? Any positive?
17Hi there! This post couldn’t be written any better! Reading through this post reminds me of my previous room mate! He always kept talking about this. I will forward this article to him. Pretty sure he will have a good read. Thank you for sharing!
18You can certainly see your expertise in the paintings you write. The sector hopes for even more passionate writers like you who aren’t afraid to mention how they believe. All the time follow your heart.
19Keep functioning ,remarkable job!
20Some really wonderful information, Sword lily I detected this.
21I just could not depart your web site prior to suggesting that I really enjoyed the usual info a person provide for your guests? Is gonna be back frequently in order to investigate cross-check new posts.
22You actually make it seem so easy with your presentation but I find this matter to be really something which I think I would never understand. It seems too complex and extremely broad for me. I’m looking forward for your next post, I will try to get the hang of it!
23Excellent post. I was checking constantly this blog and I’m inspired! Very useful information particularly the last phase 🙂 I deal with such info much. I was looking for this certain information for a long time. Thank you and good luck.
24I got good info from your blog
25Aw, this was a really nice post. In concept I want to put in writing like this moreover – taking time and actual effort to make a very good article… but what can I say… I procrastinate alot and certainly not seem to get one thing done.
26It’s actually a nice and helpful piece of information. I’m happy that you just shared this useful info with us. Please keep us up to date like this. Thanks for sharing.
27It is in reality a great and useful piece of information. I’m glad that you simply shared this useful info with us. Please keep us up to date like this. Thank you for sharing.
28I am now not sure where you’re getting your information, but good topic. I needs to spend a while studying much more or working out more. Thank you for fantastic information I was searching for this information for my mission.
29Good day! Do you use Twitter? I’d like to follow you if that would be ok. I’m undoubtedly enjoying your blog and look forward to new updates.
30There are actually lots of particulars like that to take into consideration. That could be a nice level to deliver up. I supply the ideas above as common inspiration however clearly there are questions just like the one you carry up where a very powerful factor might be working in trustworthy good faith. I don?t know if finest practices have emerged around issues like that, but I am sure that your job is clearly recognized as a good game. Each girls and boys really feel the affect of only a moment’s pleasure, for the remainder of their lives.
31I was wondering if you ever thought of changing the structure of your blog? Its very well written; I love what youve got to say. But maybe you could a little more in the way of content so people could connect with it better. Youve got an awful lot of text for only having one or two pictures. Maybe you could space it out better?
32The core of your writing while sounding reasonable originally, did not sit perfectly with me after some time. Somewhere throughout the sentences you were able to make me a believer but just for a very short while. I however have got a problem with your jumps in assumptions and you might do nicely to help fill in those gaps. If you can accomplish that, I would definitely end up being impressed.
33Hi , I do believe this is an excellent blog. I stumbled upon it on Yahoo , i will come back once again. Money and freedom is the best way to change, may you be rich and help other people.
34Hey very cool blog!! Man .. Beautiful .. Wonderful .. I’ll bookmark your blog and take the feeds additionallyKI am satisfied to search out a lot of helpful information here in the post, we need work out more strategies in this regard, thanks for sharing. . . . . .
35Hello. impressive job. I did not expect this. This is a fantastic story. Thanks!
36I have been absent for some time, but now I remember why I used to love this blog. Thanks, I’ll try and check back more frequently. How frequently you update your web site?
37I just couldn’t go away your site before suggesting that I extremely enjoyed the usual info an individual provide in your visitors? Is gonna be again continuously in order to inspect new posts
38Its such as you read my mind! You appear to grasp a lot approximately this, like you wrote the ebook in it or something. I think that you just could do with some p.c. to drive the message home a bit, but instead of that, this is great blog. A great read. I will definitely be back.
39You have brought up a very good points, appreciate it for the post.
40It’s hard to find knowledgeable people on this topic, but you sound like you know what you’re talking about! Thanks
41Hi, Neat post. There is a problem with your site in internet explorer, would check this… IE still is the market leader and a large portion of people will miss your excellent writing because of this problem.
42I’m impressed, I must say. Really not often do I encounter a weblog that’s both educative and entertaining, and let me tell you, you’ve gotten hit the nail on the head. Your thought is excellent; the problem is one thing that not sufficient people are speaking intelligently about. I am very pleased that I stumbled throughout this in my search for something relating to this.
43Good website! I truly love how it is easy on my eyes and the data are well written. I’m wondering how I could be notified when a new post has been made. I’ve subscribed to your feed which must do the trick! Have a nice day!
44Some really fantastic blog posts on this internet site, appreciate it for contribution.
45You have observed very interesting points! ps nice site.
46I would like to thank you for the efforts you have put in writing this site. I’m hoping the same high-grade web site post from you in the upcoming as well. Actually your creative writing skills has encouraged me to get my own blog now. Really the blogging is spreading its wings fast. Your write up is a great example of it.
47What i don’t realize is actually how you’re no longer really much more smartly-liked than you may be right now. You are so intelligent. You recognize thus significantly in the case of this subject, made me in my view believe it from so many various angles. Its like women and men don’t seem to be fascinated unless it’s one thing to accomplish with Girl gaga! Your own stuffs nice. At all times maintain it up!
48Heya i am for the first time here. I came across this board and I find It truly useful & it helped me out a lot. I hope to give something back and help others like you helped me.
49Just desire to say your article is as astounding. The clarity in your post is simply cool and i could assume you’re an expert on this subject. Well with your permission allow me to grab your RSS feed to keep updated with forthcoming post. Thanks a million and please continue the rewarding work.
50