Korea Diary | K-Pop Entertainment Co Walking Tour (Day 21)
My memory is fuzzy regarding many aspects of this trip. One thing I am 100% sure of is Bestie C and I both slept in the Saturday of Day 21. The fact that it was a weekend played a part but we were thoroughly exhausted from the previous day's adventures. All day of walking and blistering heat made for a very good sleep.
We started the day with a vegan meal from the Loving Hut in Sinchon. I think it was one of a few, if not only, vegan/vegetarian restaurant nearby. Bestie C read about it on a blog and wanted to give it a try. We both ordered the fried cutlet from the Loving Hut. It was ₩7,000, which is pricey compared to some other meals we've had in Korea but still on the cheaper side compared to eating out in NYC.
The regular, non-vegan, version is usually a pork cutlet that is breaded, fried, and served with sauce and rice. In Korea it is referred to as donkatsu. In Japan it is usually called tonkatsu. Both refer to a similar kind of dish. If there was a difference, it is probably just in the sauce styles.
Loving Hut's take on the donkatsu is soy based. In fact the English name on the menu was Soy Cuttlet. In Korean it is called 비건 콩까스 or vegan (soy)bean katsu. I would like to know what kind of magically stuff they used to make this faux meat cutlet because I remember it tasted just like a meaty version. If I didn't know before hand and someone just ordered this for me, I would have probably been completely fooled.
Something else that we were both curious enough to do whilst in Korea was tour the streets of Gangnam and Cheongdamdong to see the Korean entertainment companies. Of course it would have been a plus to see some celebrities and idols by chance but neither of us were fangirls enough to sit and wait for anyone.
We were only able to spot JYP, Cube, and SM Entertainments' buildings on our self-guided, internet-aided walking tour. All three had very conveniently located shops or small parks across the street where many fans were idling and hoping to catch a glimpse of their idols.
I saw these in a few parks that we passed by in Korea and I knew it existed via K-dramas but I always wondered if the free exercise equipment in the parks was ever used. I guess that person might prove me wrong. Now I am also curious if such parks would be popular in the U.S. There's supposedly a higher number of overweight population in America than in Asia and who really wants to make that yearly donation to the gym...
A friend met up with Bestie C and I near the main street in the Gangnam district for dinner. I had initially wanted to try a pig intestine KBBQ restaurant that a popular Korean variety member and rapper of Leessang, Kang Gary, ran in Gangnam. Despite being able to locate the restaurant with the help of blogs, the BBQ joint was already shuttered. But my craving for grilled pig intestine only grew bigger during the search. What to do?
Of course we went on to find another KBBQ place that had intestine instead. The three of us ended up at The Mak Chang 막창 in a food alley off the Gangnam main street. We ordered those pig intestines that I had wanted in addition to some pork belly and beef.
It might sound really weird to be eating intestines. Yes it is the organ that houses all the feces of an animal. No it doesn't taste like it, if it's been cleaned well. Intestines taste really good when the outside gets super crispy. The inside of the circular food is still soft and slightly chewy. It is really all about the different textures for this cut of meat. Don't hate it until you try it. I love to eat the Chinese fried version but since it is on the fatty side, I don't get to eat it often.
A new day meant a new night to get shaved ice. This time we went a place in Sinchon called Ho Mil Pat or 호밀팥 since we saw a long line up of people waiting for it. If I remember right, the fruit bingsoos were the popular items. If I don't remember right then, we were just really happy to order something with fresh fruit. These two were the fruit shaved ice (과일빙수) and watermelon shaved ice (수박빙수). Both types come with their own serving of sweet red beans and fresh ddeok and were ₩7,500 each. At this point in time, I can say this wasn't my most favorite spot for bingsoo. But hey! It is still fresh fruit, red beans, and ddeok...good components nonetheless.
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