A member of our gourmet club who lives far away in LA came back to Korea for a short visit, timed for Chuseok. We arranged a lunch gathering at Polpo to fit the visit, and the food just keeps getting better and better.

Our table for the day

Eight to ten people seems to be the most they can seat at once. Any more than that and you have to book out the whole place. Lots of glasses on the table; given what kind of gathering this is, we were fully set to start drinking from lunchtime.

The speaker

Cool jazz, the chef’s taste, plays non-stop. A regular restaurant would go for something poppier, and there are not many restaurants in Korea where jazz like this plays. A bar, maybe.

Wine flown in from the States

The Chardonnay (a Newton), straight from America, tasted crisp and refreshing. Apparently it is sold in Korea too, and if the price is right it is a wine I would highly recommend.

Madame Coco

The bubbly Polpo pushes, and the value for money is excellent.

Steamed egg with a generous dose of truffle oil

That pricey truffle oil is floating all over it. Every time I eat at Polpo I get the feeling the chef does not skimp on ingredients.

Bagna cauda

It works as a salad, but it is also great as a nibble with white wine.

Avocado and octopus salad

Excellent both as a snack with drinks and as a starter. There are so many things here to pair with wine, white wine in particular.

Trippa

The trippa keeps evolving. It was tasty before, but now it is even better. They use lard when frying the meat, and the soup is made the authentic Italian way too, so I guess the extra effort shows in the flavor. Now that the restaurant is running with a bit more breathing room, the improvement in the food is remarkable. The food this day was so good that I came back several times within a short span afterwards. If you have been before, I really recommend going again.

Hanwoo beef carpaccio

Hanwoo seared lightly on the outside only, seasoned with salt and cheese. It looks simple but it was incredibly good. The seasoning in particular was spot on. I cannot think of many places in Korea besides Polpo that bring out the flavor of the ingredients to this degree.

The wine of the day

Not something we ordered at Polpo, but a wine (Sassicaia 2006) we had dropped off a week earlier to let it settle. Every bit as splendid as its reputation. They say it gets even better with a few more years, but who can wait. You never know how busy life is going to get, so the best policy is to drink it while you can.

Roast pork with shiitake

The aroma of the shiitake filled my mouth. The pork was really good too, and the pairing with the mushrooms was killer. Polpo’s style of cooking around seasonal ingredients seems to have really hit its stride.

Wine of the day, part 2

A three-generation wine: grandson, father and grandfather (Matsu). We were told the grandfather was the best, so we ordered it, and it was mature in taste with a lovely nose. Still, of the three, the most popular at Polpo is apparently the grandson, which must be down to the label. A minority preferred the father, though.

Eggplant pasta

The sauce is good, but the eggplant in particular was sweet. As autumn deepens, more and more delicious ingredients will keep coming, so I am even more curious what dishes will be lined up next.

Abalone aglio e olio

Packed with chewy abalone. There cannot be many places in Korea where you can eat such a luxurious pasta at this price.

The complimentary wine of the day

Our members ate and drank so well that the chef brought out a bottle on the house, and the label is fun (Bienbebido, “eat octopus and drink wine”). He says Polpo is the only place in Korea you can find it.

This day doubled as the August birthday gathering, so a cake made an appearance too

Mooncakes flown in from Singapore

Treats arriving from the States and from Singapore too; it was a rather bountiful get-together. It really felt like Chuseok.

Coffee

The coffee at Polpo is among the best in Korea. If you have the time, do try it.

Round two: patbingsu at Snowball nearby

They use a distinctive kind of ice. It is tasty enough in its own way, but a plain Mealtop-style patbingsu suits my palate better.

And so, after eating extremely well from lunchtime on, we said goodbye until next time, though we actually met up again the very next day.

The sky on the way home

The sky was so clear and beautiful that I thought, autumn is finally coming. I am late posting this, and by now the weather has turned chilly.

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