I got hold of a meal coupon for La Cucina, the Italian restaurant in Itaewon, so I headed straight over. This is a place you could say rewrote the history of Italian food in Korea. These days, with upscale restaurants lining the streets of Cheongdam-dong, it isn’t as popular as it once was, but it’s still loved by a lot of people. The menu you get with the meal coupon is a simple version of the dinner menu, but there was nothing wrong with the portions or the taste. The one catch is that wine by the glass is billed separately, so it wasn’t entirely free.
Sunset over Itaewon
It may be called Itaewon, but since it sits right in front of the main gate of the Hyatt hotel on Namsan, it isn’t an easy place to reach without a car. I gave myself plenty of time and walked up, and it was a rather hot day. Thanks to that, though, I got to take a lovely photo of the sunset.
Bread
It tasted fine, but I was a little surprised that they brought baguette instead of focaccia.
Grilled scallops with endive, couscous and saffron sauce
As you would expect from a famous restaurant, they use plenty of good ingredients and turn out delicious dishes.
Soup of the day
I don’t really remember the name, but it was quite good. Serving simple dishes well is surely why this place has been loved for so long.
Pasta of the day
It looks ordinary, but it was delicious. This is an expensive restaurant to begin with, so food of this level is only to be expected, but as someone eating on a coupon I felt nothing but grateful.
Grilled salmon
As befits a simple course, the main course arrives. On the face of it it’s just an ordinary piece of grilled salmon, but of course it’s especially good. It made me curious about how they cooked it.
Steak
This one was cooked perfectly too. A taste worthy of the reputation.
Dessert
It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t anything special either. Restaurants in Korea generally feel weak on dessert.
Herbal tea
Not many restaurants keep herbal tea on hand, so in terms of service it has to count as excellent, but the taste was just so-so.
Wine by the glass
Before it arrived, I took a photo of the day’s wines by the glass.
La Cucina was a restaurant I remember for its carefully made food and friendly service. But the prices are steep and the location is awkward, so I’m not sure I’ll ever have a reason to go back.