These days, whenever I make plans to meet someone in Gangnam, I pretty much only end up at Sicily or Polpo. Given my tastes, I do not go around looking for restaurants to drink beer, wine, sake or whisky at (I get more satisfaction buying the bottles myself than drinking at a restaurant..), so there are not many places I would go for a drink. Ingredient-wise, life was better when I lived in Japan, but this is not Japan, and as I have tried to adapt, the places I go have become fixed and I cannot break out of them. Well, the end of the year is coming, so no doubt countless spur-of-the-moment drinking sessions await.
Anyway, on this day I went to Sicily with a crack team of soju and somaek lovers.
Sanjeok skewers
You have to order these as the basic starter.
The large seafood platter
We had enough people so we ordered the large, and this is what came out first. Up to this point it is apparently the same as the medium, but the large includes a lot of other dishes on top of that.
Shrimp
This is part of the platter. Nice and fresh.
Blanched octopus
This is also part of the platter.
Salted pollock roe
The classic soju side dish.
Spicy raw fish salad
I cannot quite remember what fish it was
Stuffed squid
Everything above was part of the platter, and the stuffed squid we ordered separately. I originally wanted the whole steamed squid, but they did not have it that day, so we got this instead. It was not bad, but the whole steamed squid is definitely tastier.
Hanwoo beef ramyeon
The broth is rich and fishing out the pieces of hanwoo beef is a lot of fun. Some said the crab ramyeon was better because its broth is more refreshing, but crab is hard work to eat as a side dish for drinks, so I think it will divide opinion.
Crab ramyeon
It is a shame there is no meat to pick out, but the broth really is refreshing.
After eating this well, it came to about 25,000 won per person. For a pocha that is expensive if you call it expensive, and cheap if you call it cheap. To be honest, soju is a colourless, flavourless, strong drink, so pretty much anything goes with it as a side dish. If all you are going to drink is soju, there is no need to seek out a place that is pricey and delicious. But lately, price aside, I find myself looking for places whose ingredients I can trust. I will probably keep coming back to Sicily, which means this already dull blog is going to get even duller.
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