Seoul is a vibrant city full of amazing surprises. Even after calling this city home for over a decade, I still constantly find new and exciting spots to discover. This month, the district of Songpa teamed up with Global Seoul Mates to promote the area. So I set off to discover some of the best things to see, do, and of course EAT in Songpa, Seoul, South Korea.
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(more…)Yankee’s Burger in Apgujeong is serving up American style burgers in Seoul
Korea does Korean food well. That’s a given. However, when it comes to Western food, they often miss the mark. While I spend most of my days enjoying various traditional Korean foods, I occasionally need a little taste of home.
Living in Seoul, it seems like I don’t need to go far to find a fast food restaurant. Burger King, McDonald’s, KFC, Subway and Pizza Hut can all be easily found here (though I’d most definitely welcome a Wendy’s). Korea’s own burger restaurant, Lotteria, can be hit or miss. My first impression of the restaurant, years ago, was that it was bordering on being inedible. However, they have continually been upgrading their menu, and I find myself enjoying it much more.
But sometimes I crave a nice juicy, hand-pressed burger. I have been disappointed so many times by places that slather on way too much sauce, use odd condiments, or cook the burger until it resembles a dry hockey puck.
Today, we are checking out ‘Yankee’s Burger’ (양키스 버거). The restaurant has various locations throughout Seoul. For this video, we visited the Apgujeong Rodeo Street location.
First impressions
The restaurant is quite small, with limited seating. There is a nice large window with stools, which is perfect for getting a little sunshine on a nice summer’s day. The interior is very hipsterish, and the staff is young. Rap music plays in the background, which seems to fit the vibe of the restaurant well.
I observed a couple utilize valet parking before entering the restaurant. However, since I took public transportation, I don’t know much about this. But it might be an option for anyone looking to drive there.
The Menu
The menu is pretty simple. It has burgers, pizza, drinks, and a few other appetizers. The beer menu looked nice with domestic beer on tap, and various foreign beers being sold in bottles. I absolutely had to have a Sam Adam’s to start my meal.
In all, we tested three different hamburgers, the chili cheese fries, a Meatholic pizza, and two beers.
See my full review and find out more about the menu by watching this video!:
The Food
We started our meal with three different burgers. Each burger had a unique flavor profile. Each burger came on a toasted bun served with various toppings, and side of jalapeno peppers.
The Rodeo Burger came topped with fresh vegetables, as well as mac and cheese. This was the ultimate comfort food. The mac and cheese combined with the hamburger was a true treat. This is hangover food at its finest.
The Mullae burger came topped with mushrooms, truffle oil, and a slice of salami. While the Rodeo Burger might appeal the my inner child, the Mullae Burger appeals to my desire to be fancy.
The chili cheese burger comes topped with…well, chili and cheese! While this burger was nice, I would recommend just getting the chili cheese french fries, and pairing it with one of the other burgers.
Finally, we ordered up one of their 13 inch pizzas. We went with the Meatholic which came topped with pulled pork, taco meat, and arugula. Getting a pizza at a burger place might lead you to think it would be subpar, but I was pleasantly surprised. Dipping it in the tomato sauce adds a whole other level of flavor. As someone who loves dipping sauces, I was a happy camper with this sauce. I would be sure to order up an extra portion so I could slather on that sauce nice and thick.
The Verdict
After trying the Rodeo Burger, the Mullae Burger, and the chilli cheese burger, I was stuffed! All of the burgers were hot, juicy, and served on a delicious bun.
If I were to come back and had to choose just one burger to eat, I would probably go with the Mullae burger. The saltiness of the thin slice of salami, mixed with the cool mayonnaise and truffle oil set this burger apart. Combine it with a side of chili cheese fries and an ice cold beer, and you have a great meal that won’t break the bank.
I would definitely also come back for the pizza! While this place is known as a burger joint, I would argue that they might even do pizza better than their own signature dish! The dipping sauce was the perfect topping.
In Conclusion
Yankee’s Burger is a small restaurant, but they are serving big flavors. Is it the best hamburger in Korea? You’ll have to be the judge of that. I would certainly put it toward the top of the list. Be sure to check them out the next time you’re in the Apgujeong area!
Address: 662-14 Sinsa-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
합정 미야비: Seoul’s most unique sushi?
Seeing as Korea is a peninsula, it isn’t difficult to find fresh seafood. Raw fish can be found at restaurants all over the country, as well as in large fish markets, small outdoor markets, grocery stores, and even convenience stores.
For this video, I traveled to the Hapjeong District of Seoul. This neighborhood has a hip vibe to it, and it well known for couples as it makes for a great date evening.
Visiting ‘Miyavi’ (합정 미야비) was a great experience. The restaurant is small, and located on the second floor. The restaurant only has a few tables, while the counter can seat six patrons. You’ll get a first-row seat to the sushi chef in action.
Speaking of the sushi chef, Choi InHo (최인호) has a decade working at one of the finest hotels in the country. Watching him meticulously slice the raw fish proves his knowledge, passion, and creativity for delivering a memorable product.
While the ambiance of the restaurant exudes a romantic feeling, the random pop music playing in the background seems out of place (hello, Justin Bieber!). If I had to change one thing about the experience – this would be it. Businesses in Asia love to blast up-beat music, so I shouldn’t have been surprised by this. However, it was super random.
We started our meal with a dish I had never heard of. Raw flatfish (광어) is plated on a sauce made from vegetables and truffle. More truffle is grated on top of the fish. It is then fused with oak smoke.
While this may sound like a gimmick, the result was actually the highlight of the meal. The fish was soft and tender. Faint traces of the oak could be picked up. The sauce was rich. I could have left after this, and been satisfied.
What followed next was an assortment of 13 different types of raw seafood. I was most familiar with the raw tuna and salmon. After eating raw tuna on dozens of occasions – I can confidently say this was like none other. It was the best bite of raw fish I have ever eaten. It melted in my mouth with a flavor unlike any other tuna I have tried.
The other 12 pieces of sashimi on the plate, while amazing, just could never live up to that tuna. This is one piece of fish you don’t want to kill with going overboard with the soy sauce and wasabi! Please us it sparingly!
Moving on, we tried the potato/cheese/fish egg concoction. This was topped with a slab of butter. It seemed like a true dichotomy from all the raw fish we had just eaten. However, it was so tasty! The outside was like a deep fried mashed potato, while the inside was gooey and melted cheese. This is the type of food you need a beer to companion it with!
We also tried their beef hot pot, as well as the sorbet. These were both impressive as well!
Overall, 합정 미야비 is serving up some great food at reasonable prices. There are other izakayas and restaurants serving up fish with lower prices, but the quality is on a totally different level.
If nothing else, I would stop by for the truffle flatfish ceviche, as it is worth going out of your way for!
Restaurant information:
Address: 31-7 World cup-ro 3-gil, Hapjeong-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul
Phone: 02-336-5572
Meeting Megan Bowen and KARD concert at Korea vs Mexico World Cup event
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PS- I make weekly videos on Korean food, life and culture. Click here so you never miss a video!
On June 23, Korea faced Mexico in the World Cup. While Mexico ultimately beat Korea, those of us in Seoul still had a great time cheering the team on.
I was invited to an event with other foreign residents. It was sponsored by #iseoulu and was held in Seoul Plaza.
Those who attended were given free gifts including a t-shirt, tumbler, and an interesting head band thingy.
The event started with various K-Pop cover groups dancing to popular songs. Most of the groups were actually from abroad. I assume they were flown to Korea to perform for this event.
There were both boy and girl groups. Everyone was quite impressive and energetic. It was easy to see that they are passionate about K-Pop.
After that, we were treated to a performance by the group KARD. They performed two of their hit songs before leaving. If you’d like to see their performance, see the video above.
After that concert, I headed over to Megan Bowen’s meet and greet. I have watched her video for years, and it was fun chatting with her for a few moments.
Overall, it was a long but fun day! Although Korea lost the World Cup match, I still had a great time watching the 2018 K-Pop cover dance festival, KARD, and meeting Megan Bowen!
For more info, watch the video above.
The most creative burger joint in Seoul- Mil’s Burger
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PS- I make weekly videos on Korean food, life and culture. Click here so you never miss a video!
Recently, I ran across a burger place on Instagram. I knew it was near my work place, and figured I should check it out. As much as I love eating local food while abroad, sometimes I just gotta have a little taste of home.
Mils Burger is a 2-story restaurant located near Samgakji Station. Conveniently, it is also located right by an entrance to the Yongsan Army base. The restaurant has an Army theme, which truly sets it apart from other theme restaurants. I sat on the second floor, which had an old-school bed, and various uniforms and other 1960’s memorabilia.
The restaurant serves different types of burgers and sandwiches, along with beer.
I opted for the Air Force burger, which had a fried chicken leg, lettuce, cheese, onion, and sauce. The sauce was sweet and spicy. The chicken was nice and juicy. My only complaint is that the sandwich had a bit too much sauce, which made it very difficult to eat. A little less sauce would have made the sandwich much better.
The owners of the restaurant are very nice and inviting. They also speak English (and have English menus).
Overall, if you’re looking for a cool place with good food to eat around Itaewon, you should head to Mils Burger in Yongsan Gu!
To reach Mils Burger, take the subway to Exit 11 of Samgakji Station. Walk straight 100 meters. It will be on your right side.
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If you are going to the War Memorial of Korea, you should plan to stop by!
Address: 210-2 Hangang-daero, Yongsan Gu, Seoul, Korea 04353
Myeongdong’s best restaurant (Seoul)
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Recently, I visited ‘Sinseon Seollongtang’ (신선설농탕) in Seoul. Located in the heart of Myeongdong, you won’t be able to miss this shop due to the long lines that await patrons eager to enter this shop.
The restaurant has been serving seollongtang since 1981. For those who might not know. seollongtang is a milky-white soup that is made by boiling ox bones for many hours. The soup contains big pieces of meat and is topped with chopped green onions.
The restaurant allows customers to enjoy as much kimchi and pickled radish as they’d like. Beware, though, the kimchi packs a bit of heat!
The prices for the soup start at 8000KRW, which is very affordable for a meal.
Myeongdong has plenty of places for visitors to eat, including some of the best street food in the country. However, this soup is perfect on a cold winter day, or even just for a light lunch on a hot day.
I recommend trying to visit when it isn’t peak hours, as the line to enter can be quite long. The shop owners and servers do speak a bit of English, and the menus are in English as well.
For our full review, check out our YouTube video.
Sinseon Seollongtang:
신선설농탕
神仙雪濃湯
Location: 56-1, Myeongdong-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul 04537, South Korea
Telephone: +82 2-777-4531
Directions: Myeongdong Station, exit 6. Walk about 300 meters.
Visiting Seoul’s BEST Dog Cafe!
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If you have ever been to Seoul, you’ll know that there is a coffee shop on almost every corner! In addition, coffee is sold in convenience stores in a variety of ways.
Seeing as there are about 2 bazillion cafes in the city, owners have to come up with new and interesting ways to gain customers. You might find yourself at a Charlie Brown cafe, a cafe with live sheep or raccoons, or even a poo cafe (yes, really)!
My favorite cafe to visit on the weekend is located in Itaewon. It is a dog-friendly cafe called 3239 Cafe. My pups and I love visiting the cafe. I find myself with a nice Americano (iced, thank you), while the doggo gets to play with his friends and run around.
This weekend we visited 3239 and documented our adventures. Check it out!
If you’re interested in visiting this great dog cafe in Itaewon, Seoul, you can find the address in the description box of the video!
#seoul #dogcafe #3239 #itaewon #korea
