One evening with no plans, a friend and I did a loop around the Yeonnam-dong and Yeonhui-dong area. It is a nice thing to still have a friend to go on restaurant tours with at this age.

Mutahiro

I had slightly high hopes since it is a ramen shop that flew in from Tokyo, but no matter how you look at it, this was not ramen at the level you get in Tokyo. Maybe it is because the competition is not as fierce as in Japan. Or maybe it is because the owner has gone back to Japan, but either way I do not see myself going twice.

The second place we went to was Sanwang Banjeom. It was once a place that a lot of bloggers wrote about, but the location is awkward and back then I was going to Jinjin and Pyeonuibang all the time, so I was not that interested. But these days this neighborhood is booming, with Tuk Tuk and the rest, Jinjin has become hard to get into because even the second branch has an absurdly long wait, and I have been visiting Pyeonuibang far too often just because it is easy to get to.. For all those reasons, let us say Sanwang Banjeom suddenly became a lot more attractive.

Boiled dumplings

The level is high enough that it does not fall behind Pyeonuibang. Overall the dishes are on the cheap side and the portions are small, so the concept works well for two or three middle-aged guys to go and eat.

Sticky rice spare ribs

I thought it would come out fried, but this is how it arrives. A pretty good dish that works both as a meal and as something to drink with. The taste is lighter than it looks and the meat is well seasoned, but above all I liked how generous the portion is for the price.

Shaoji (roast chicken)

This dish is not something two people should be ordering. The portion was so big that you would need at least four people to order one plate. As expected, it was well prepared and tasted excellent. Getting out of there after finishing it all was a bit of a struggle though..

The problem with this place seems to be that the food is so good and the portions so huge that the bar tab piles up.. It is not easy to eat a modest amount and leave.. They recently moved further inside the neighborhood, so I will have to round up the crew again.

Having eaten dinner, we had to have dessert too. I had heard the rumor that The Plate Dessert, newly opened in Yeonhui-dong, is at quite a level, so we paid a visit. If you walk over as a way to digest your meal, you get there in no time.

Mango passion fruit mousse

There are hardly any dessert shops in Korea capable of presentation this pretty. You could truly call it a dessert shop specialized for Instagram. The taste, of course, is top notch too. I imagine women would absolutely love it.

Banana ice cream and hazelnut cake

The sugar work is a work of art. If you are an Instagrammer, be sure to drop by..

It felt like a shame to go home just like that, so we stopped by Opas for a bit. Did I ever mention that I am a VIP member at Opas?

New York cocktail

A quick drink and we called it a night. When two middle-aged gourmets get together, this is the kind of outing you get..

한국어로 읽기日本語で読む