Restaurant Review - Vapiano 바피아노

The concept of Vapiano definitely brings it back to New York with quick service and ordering to eat at different stations within the same restaurant. This Italian specialty restaurant cooks up everything Italian which includes pastas, pizzas, salads, sweets and more. Simply order from each station that you desire, creating your own dishes by swiping a card that is your "bill." When ordering, you will be given a buzzer that allows for you to pick up your orders when ready. 

Vapiano offers two floors of seating as well as an outdoor patio that has picnic style benches. It is the perfect place to go to enjoy an Italian meal with high benches and a different style of seating. The atmosphere is welcoming to the busy businessmen during lunch hours and a romantic atmosphere into the later hours at dawn. It is such a popular place that foreigners and Italians themselves go to Vapiano to enjoy a true meal. The difference of Vapiano and many other Italian restaurants is the fact that there are foreigners cooking up the goodies. 

With an open kitchen, you can see everything being made by a true chef. Dishes average at a price of $15 and portions are fairly large. It is definitely recommended to be shared between guests, but not recommended for foreigners because the Italians were able to down a few sample platters themselves. 

There are two locations in Seoul, the address and phone number is as follows:

Samsung 945-27 Daechi-dong Gangnam-gu, Seoul 02-554-7257

Dongdaemun 591-53 Jeonnong-dong, Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul 02-3707-1708

Street Food Yum - Burnt Sugar 꿀타래

One of the cutest and sweetest cheap eats on the streets of Korea is the various shaped burnt sugar or Dalgona Ppopgi or 꿀타래. For less than a dollar, this circular shaped caramelized like sugar with a cute image in the center is extremely sweet, even sweeter than some candies that I have had in Korea. The test for many is to eat around the shape and not crack the shape in the center, but I have yet to do so. Be sure to test your skills with this sweet tooth satisfaction! You can definitely find this in all tourist areas, any popular areas. Extremely great snack to walk and munch on.

Street Food Yum - Baby Kimbaps

Kimbaps are a Korean traditional eat, but this street food yum has taken the traditional eat and turned it into a twist. With so much to choose from, it is practically impossible to make a choice without sampling each! This stand located in Dong Dae Mun whips up baby kimbaps and sells each roll for just fifty cents.  The variety of kimbaps include spam, tuna, pork, eel, radish, anchovies, sweet potato, and a handful of others that I just can't remember.

For those of you who are looking for a quick, cheap, and cute eat for a night of shopping in Dong Dae Mun, definitely stop by this stand located across the street from the central malls of attractions which includes Doota, Milagro, and the many wholesale locations as well.

Street Food Yum - Seafood Stir Fry Noodles

One of the cheap eats for just $3 is this seafood stir fry noodles found in Dong Dae Mun that is made of thin rice noodles, bean sprouts, onions, cabbage, other vegetables, and squid mixed with soy sauce, topped with a mayonnaise-like sauce. Made fresh on the stand, this street food yum helps to satisfy the stomach of shoppers.

Although this mix is more of a vegetable dish rather than a seafood dish, it is still worth it for the cheap price of $3. This same stand also serves enormous sausages on a stick and BBQ chicken, freshly grilled.

Street Food Yum - Fun and Games

Korea is big on couple activities and this street game is one of them. This is one of the popular street games that can be found in a handful of tourist attractions and popular late hang out areas. These street vendors are usually out during late hours, in hope of attracting the young crowd.

Depending on the vendor, the prizes vary as well. There are vendors that have a variety of different candy and snacks to choose from as a prize. This game definitely brings out the inner kid and is worth the hype.

The concept of the game is simple, you pay a couple of dollars (usually two) and you're given a block of sticks that have different pictures on it. Select the numbers that you wish to cover and pick out these numbers from a bag. For those matching numbers you pick out, you will receive the corresponding shape of sugar crystal candy. For different stands, there is one giant candy that you can get if you get the special fish. Its nearly impossible, but always fun. I definitely got beginners luck picking 3/5 candies my first time!

Street Food Yum - Shredded Squid

Squid is a popular street food yum in Korea that comes in all different styles; some are soft, some fried, some grilled. Depending on what you are craving, you will find a kind to satisfy your taste buds. I randomly chose what I thought to be a grilled squid but instead it was a flat slice of squid that was slapped on a press pan. After lathering on some peanut butter, cinnamon and a bit of sugar, this squid is then placed though a machine that slides it through while simultaneously cooking. 

I thought it was a weird combination at first to have peanut butter, cinnamon and sugar on something that is supposed to be a salty snack but this baby was delicious! It is the right combo for someone with a sweet tooth like myself who is in love with peanut butter also. For just five dollars, it was not enough to keep me going because it was just that addicting. If you are not so big on the sweet salty combo, be sure to try out the other squid snacks!

Sweet Tooth Satisfaction - Mochi Made from Honey Kkultaraeyeot 꿀타래

When shopping in Dong Dae Mun in Seoul, I made a street food yum that I could not help but to record. The traditional Korean Court Cake of the name Kkultarae 꿀타래 is also known as Yongsuyeom takes a hard chunk of honey and putting a hole in the honey, it is slowly stretched and powdered with corn starch constantly until becoming sixteen thousand three hundred and four thin strands of honey. 

These strands are then sliced and stuffed with regular sesame, black sesame, and sugar. Combined, it is the ultimate sweet tooth satisfaction. It is amazing how the strands of honey melts in your mouth, leading you to the inner stuffings. For just $5, you receive a pretty box of 8. It is probably one of the best inventions I have found in Korea yet! You can probably even pick up a box for yourself, only if you are able to understand Korean by visiting the Se Jong Food website. When eating, be sure to pop them out from the bottom rather than lifting it out of the container. You can find these little carts all around popular areas of Seoul like Myeongdong and Insadong, but each have their own unique filling which are relatively similar. 

Street Food Yum - Dong Dae Mun

There is always great food in shopping areas. One of the more special treats that I found was the french fries stuffed with a hotdog on a stick. I am not big on hot dogs, so I didn't try it, but it looked delicious, considering everyone was practically munching on it. Another note about Korean hot dogs: they're not the same like they are back in the states. Just a FYI for those who are craving for a NY street hotdog. 

 Aside from street carts, there are those street food vendors that have seating under a plastic tent. Today's street food yum is just that. Be aware that when you order these portions, they are meant to be shared with others. If you are visiting Dong Dae Mun and happen to stop by one of these spots, you will see that they have kimchi pancake, fried fish paste, and other goodies already cooked. You will be shouted at and hollered to come over, but they're extra friendly people trying to get customers. 

The only problem with such stands is the sanitation level. It is not as high as you expect because you are sitting on plastic stools, eating off of folding tables out in the street. You will probably be squished because of limited space and may have to give up the extra table that you have for three. There's not such thing as napkins in such areas, they have a roll of toilet paper hanging around for you to grab and use so bring your own if you're big on germs! Keep in mind that most street vendors server their dishes on a plate that is wrapped with a plastic bag. It saves on the dish washing and usually, they just wipe the plates clean.

Aside from the bad, the one good thing is that these vendors have their menu not only in Korean, but Chinese and Japanese as well. There isn't any English, but it was great progress being able to read Chinese and ordering the exact food that I want! The dishes include a stir fried noodle which has pork and vegetables mixed in, as well as a spicy pork dish. Absolutely delicious, a little pricey for two plates of food that cost $24, but it was good!

Shopping Splurge - Dong Dae Mun Cheap Pick Ups

The first official shopping splurge in Korea and it only set me back a total of $100. I know back in New York, this $100 will probably be for one item. This week's shopping spree is all from Dong Dae Mun, by the History and Cultural Park in Seoul, Korea. There are just so much stores and outside shops that you can probably get lost, but the best thing is being able to bargain and getting a good steal. For some items, you can skip the bargaining (like my $8 beige parka jacket). 

The only problem with Korea is that there is usually one size fits all. This does not work out to those who are not the typical Korean small. Keep in mind that the size system in Korea is different from that in America, usually a lot smaller. 

For my first steal in Korea, I picked up an eight dollar parka jacket, ten dollar extremely warm and thick hoodie, $5 for two pairs of leggings, $3 zebra tights, ten dollar checkered sweater (doesn't look as good as it does on full bodies like me than it does on skinny Korean girls), $15 furry leather gloves and a $7 wrap scarf that is just oh so comfortable. 

It is definitely a place for college students looking for a good deal. For girls who love to shop and can bargain. There is a regular mall in the area for those who look for luxury Korean brands and items. Unfortunately for me, we just didn't have enough time to explore. I expect prices to be just like designer brands, which equals to a lot of damage!