pre-Michelin Seoul restaurant rampage

[Abdul_A350]

Then the second magnificently cooked piece of squid in three days, this time with flag overtones:



The entire meal was skilfully executed, and most importantly, delicious. The main dessert was a brilliant idea:



A word about quantities: I am both gourmet and gourmand, and while satisfied, was by no means 'full' at the end of either of these first two meals.

Tonight's contemplation was about a dear teacher who died recently. One of those people who seemed miraculously able to tailor his approach to each individual's needs and aims.

 

[LadyC]

I am really enjoying your TR. Thank you for sharing your personal stories.

 

[Abdul_A350]

I forgot to mention that Jungsik also has a restaurant in New York with two Michelin stars:

Jungsik

https://www.viamichelin.com/web/Restaurant/New_York-10013-Jungsik-360775-41102

 

[Abdul_A350]

Very different to the Teheran I have experienced:





The first photo was taken from the Parnas Intercontinental. There is another (COEX) Intercontinental right next to it. From what I understand, the latter is more modern. I would not hesitate to stay at the former again. Access from ICN was very easy, access to the subway likewise.

 

[Abdul_A350]

Here is a bell

 

[Abdul_A350]

I basically had the National Hangeul Museum to myself. I think most of the traffic might come from school excursions.

Korean romanization is so problematic that it does actually make sense to try to learn Hangeul instead. I got a bit of the way... even being able to read the odd little bit is satisfying.

 

[Abdul_A350]

Mingles

This was the hardest booking to get, in the end I think I only secured a seat because of a misunderstanding. It was also the place I had heard about most in Tokyo.

Mingles

It's not that far from Jungsik, in a more prominent location, ground floor. I had a counter seat.

I should preface the rest by saying that these things tend to be so subjective, and I was a little tired that day and perhaps also not in the best frame of mind.

Absolutely stunning presentation from start to finish.











I love pasta so much that I left the ravioli (? perhaps not technically correct ?) in the last dish until towards the end, and the soup was indeed delicious. Then I was hit with a flood of vanilla that just made no sense to me. Perhaps I should have broken it earlier to let the vanilla mix with the soup, I am not sure.

 

[Abdul_A350]

I cannot say much about the lamb except that it was a disappointment to me. The sauces were nice, the meat was just not very nicely cooked.

Frustrating, too, because I think it was the only part of the menu where I had a choice, and one of the options was a whole duck for a small additional charge.

And then this was perhaps my favorite dessert of all time. Some chilli heat, great textures...



And I loved the presentation of the petits fours:



Tokyo pastry chefs are just amazing, and what I saw in Seoul was very much on a par.

The matching drinks option apparently includes Korean spirits as well as wines, and a couple of my Tokyo sommelier friends spoke very highly of it.

Things felt a little rushed and impersonal. There were a lot of staff, I heard a lot of what sounded like heated discussion amongst them, and I noticed people at tables struggling to get attention.

My guess, very possibly wrong, would be that they are struggling to cope with a surge in popularity.

Oh, and I hate it when I get charged for water.

It was still an excellent meal, but I preferred the first two.

My contemplation that night was about this fellow:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amir_Aczel

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/08/s...f-scientific-cliffhanger-dies-at-65.html?_r=0

He had a love for mathematics that I very much share. Passed away a year ago today.

 

[Abdul_A350]

A morning at the war memorial.









I then thought I would visit the palace on the way home, but had not allowed for the impact of the demonstrations in the same area. Police buses as far as the eye could see.

 

[Abdul_A350]

La Yeon

This was where my timing was particularly fortunate. They received three stars from Michelin, and it sounds like it is now very very difficult to get a booking.

La Yeon

They are located in The Shilla Seoul hotel, and I stayed there for that night. Magnificent hotel. The Amex FHR booking came with a US$100 credit that could be used towards the meal.

Perhaps the nicest bathroom I've been in. I should add that the view from the toilet outside the restaurant was also beautiful.



The menu:





I think they need to make a greater effort at wine/drink pairings.

Here we have our second, more traditional, version of the "nine delicacies". This time with wheat crepes.



And a very subtly delicious hot-pot:

 

[Abdul_A350]

The presentation was beautiful throughout.







I enjoyed everything, but it was not a particularly warm experience. I think I would have enjoyed this meal more if shared with friends.

This night's contemplation was basically about one of my sons, and luck.

By the mid-1980s I was finishing a doctorate in mathematics with a view to teaching. My previous studies were of little relevance in Japan.

But Japan was starting to get very expensive, and my youngest child at that time was about to enter university.

One of my professors introduced me to an investment bank, they apparently wanted somebody who was good with numbers and could speak with authority about bonds to sovereign wealth fund managers.

I asked how I could speak with authority knowing zero about the subject, and the interviewer said 'You are very tall'.

And somehow, it all worked out.

That did however mean I was suddenly very busy, and spending less time with my children. My second son (the oldest who came to Japan) had found the transition quite hard, he was barely a minor at the time we arrived, struggled with the language, and had been very close to his mother and hard hit by her passing.

He spent several years working on construction sites as the bubble inflated, grew increasingly unhappy, and in 1991 we lost him. 25 years later I still think basically every day about how happiness is so very individual, and how what looks like paradise to one person can be hell to another.

 

[Abdul_A350]

If contemplating a holiday to Seoul, I would highly recommend the Shilla Seoul (hotel) + La Yeon combination, assuming it can be booked. And then I would try to add Jungsik and Ryunique (still to come) on either side.

 

[Abdul_A350]

Ryunique

My final restaurant for the trip. The only one of the five not to get a Michelin star, and it had also apparently fallen out of the 'Top 50' list. It was also the only restaurant I went to with empty tables.

Ryunique

It was also the best experience of my trip, and one of the best restaurants I have ever been to.

Some photos, with minimal comment, because there was just basically one surprise after another and I would not want to spoil any of that for anyone.

 

[Abdul_A350]

Ryunique continued:

The space was beautiful, a kind of half-basement, so you could see what was happening at street level.

My waiter, and the sommelier, was an Australian (Tim) who had worked at Rockpool (as had the chef) and elsewhere.

Tim was charming throughout, and the chef and pastry chef came out to explain their creations. It was just a very warm experience. And thoroughly delicious, and interesting throughout.

 

[Abdul_A350]

Flight food:

JL F on the way over. I actually ended up having three SYD-NRT flights during the same menu cycle, and chose the same things each time. My memory is going, which is part of the reason for writing this now.

A delicious duck and fig salad, and a very nicely cooked piece of chicken, with impeccable service as always.





Asiana J on the way back, my first time flying them. Ended up in an F seat, and I found the J service excellent, and the food very tasty.

 

[love_the_life]

Thanks for the fabulous TR Abdul. It has been nearly 20 years since I was in Korea, as part of a teacher exchange visit. At that time the food seemed very insular - every meal for the time I was there (mostly home stay) it was rice, kimchi, broth and some form of meat. Some of the meals we had out included multiple types of meat and kimchi but still followed the basic pattern. Your descriptions show a much more sophisticated dining scene and some great looking meals.
It is also the way that sometimes when alone overseas we seem to ponder things that have happened in the past. There are no answers and I really believe that people are responsible for their own choices.
Interesting to hear a bit more about your Asiana flight as they come up at times when doing LM searches but have not ever booked them.

 

[Abdul_A350]

Interesting to hear a bit more about your Asiana flight as they come up at times when doing LM searches but have not ever booked them.

It was a bit of an exception, because it was one of the few days that an A380 was operating due to some seasonal scheduling changes. Sitting in a very nice suite for 40,000 LifeMiles was indeed nice, but required some good fortune.

The suite itself was like a slightly down-market version of an SQ A380 suite, with the doors in particular feeling a little flimsy, but I could not fault the space, not the service.

From what I hear Asiana's more usual offerings on the route do not have a very good business-class seat, and the type of plane can be a little difficult to predict. I would probably be more willing to consider it for the daytime flight on the way over, but if JL does continue to offer F on SYD-NRT, then SYD-NRT-ICN (the short NRT-ICN leg on JL F was also nice) would probably still be my preferred option, or I might consider SYD-HND-GMP on NH J using LifeMiles.

Another option that can be extracted from the LifeMiles search engine is CBR-SIN-ICN on SQ, which might interest you.

 

[bPeteb]

Thank you so much Abdul for pretty much, for so many reasons, the best TR I've read here on AFF.

 

[LadyC]

Thanks again for a great TR and for sharing some of your personal stories.

 

[samh004]

Loved reading about the different food, and the photos just made it.

I hope you don't mind, but I rotated a few of your photos too!