HCB’s Guest Post: Squid Jerky and Two Months in Korea

Our second month living in Korea flew by so quickly we barely registered our two-month anniversary last Monday. Instead of marking the occasion with something special, we just lived our lives, which is probably accomplishment enough: DME went to his Korean class; I graded papers and attended an electrifying department meeting. These days, the actual activities of making a life are absorbing more of our energy and attention than arbitrary dates and anniversaries. We’re not counting days and weeks here, and that’s a huge step. Well…I am marking our 60 days in a special way, with this little guest post.

Mr. Pizza: A Menu Planned by a Five-Year-Old, Executed by a Multinational

Last week, HCB and I had the great pleasure(?) of experiencing the Korean culinary phenomenon that is Mr. Pizza. A friend of ours (Ms. Temple!) suggested a visit to Mr. Pizza for the ongoing Korean scavenger hunt that is our lives. I was actually already well aware of Mr. Pizza because during the live StarCraft Tournament, a commercial for the popular Korean chain restaurant played repeatedly during the breaks between matches. The product being offered: Lobster Pizza.

Scavenger Hunt Task 6A: Non-Korean food in Korea

Back in California, I eat two types of food on a weekly (daily?) basis: Chinese food and Mexican food. Considering the geographic and historical context in which I now live, I invite you, Dear Reader, to wager a guess as to which of these dietary pillars is harder to come by in Korea. Need a hint? There are no tortilla chips in the supermarket.

Um… that was delicious!

In a previous, whiny post, I mentioned going with HCB to a Korean restaurant. In that post, I was, shall we say, less than full-throated in my endorsement. I really just didn’t want to complain any more than I already had. It wasn’t all that bad… it was just boring. The meat was admittedly delicious, but we can’t expect to survive off short ribs for the next five years. The pan chan (Korean snackies) were good enough, but the kimchee soup was just spicy, soggy cabbage. It’s one thing to find a cuisine alienating; it’s another thing to find it totally unremarkable. This meal triggered in me a creeping dread. Can I really eat this kind of food every day? There was nothing playful. Nothing surprising. Just heat and the gaminess of fermentation. Why am I revisiting this experience? More whining? Nope; there will be no apologetic postscript added to this entry. I am rehashing that anemic review because, in trying to figure out if I like Korean food, there’s new and important data that needs considering: yesterday, we had an INCREDIBLE Korean meal.