The Rest of my Birthday and a Review of Yeolbong, Se7en's Chicken Restaurant

Well, my birthday was last Friday, and I'm finally all caught up on my sleep/work/activities/promises, so here is the recap of my birthday.

In my last post I wrote about my birthday morning, and here's the conclusion:

At school I got a package from my parents: birthday gifts. A cute Betsey Johnson bracelet and hair pins, and such. Really cute things. I put those in my Nike bag with that big ol' card Hoon gave me. ^_^

After school, I went off to Baskin Robbins, not knowing what to expect. When i arrived at Baskin Robbins, I walked in and approached the girl at the counter. I simply said, Hi, I'm Allison... and she said, "아~ 케이크~!" Cake??? What cake?? Jong Hoon got an ice cream cake for me (last time we went to BR I had said ice cream cakes are my favorite... he must have remembered). On top of the ice cream cake box was another note.

The note said, go to the 아디다스 store. (Adidas Store). !!!!! The Adidas Store was across the street so off I went with the ice cream cake box and the Nike bag (with a balloon a student gave me tied to it lol) over to the Adidas Store. I walked in and the worker immediately looked at me and said "아! 옷~!" Clothing??? What clothing? And he walked to the back and gave me an adidas bag with some soccer pants I've been wanting for a while. Inside the bag was also a letter which was from him. SO CUTE.

I went home, changed and got ready for our date.

We met at Noryangjin and went to Sinsa station, to Garo-su-gil to eat dinner at 열봉찜닭. This restaurant is owned by musician Se7en, who is someone I really admire. I've been hoping to go to his restaurant for a long time. It's really easy to get to, which is good because I had never been to Garo-su-gil before, and it wasn't too hard for us to find it. ^^

The restaurant is located on the second floor just off the main road. We walked up the stairs and of course you are greeted by a cardboard cutout of Se7en님. We took pictures before we left to commemorate our time there.

The restaurant is quite small, smaller than I had thought, but it was tidy, and well-decorated. Dark wood tables, white light fixtures and semi-private nooks for some parties. Most seating is open, however, and they do try to fit as many tables in as they can. Even though it was tight, it didn't feel particularly cramped, but I did notice that even without all the seats filled, it was still quite loud. There are several fake trees adorned with chili peppers and pictures of celebrities, which are fun additions to the decor. On the left wall as you enter, they have posted numerous pictures and autographs of celebrities including members of Miss A, Big Bang, Park Han Byul, 2AM, as well as other actors and singers I don't remember or didn't recognize.

All of the dishes are branded with the cute chicken mascot of Yeolbong or with the chili pepper that also is used to represent the restaurant. The menu is divided into two sections. The left side is the traditional spicy jjim dalk (열봉 means really spicy, or something along those lines, that's my boyfriend's explanation) and the right side is Se7en's specialy chicken. Supposedly that's really spicy. We decided to go with the traditional spicy side.

On the spicy side you can choose your spiciness level 1-3 peppers. We got one, because we didn't know how spicy it would be. Boy were we glad we ordered level one spicy. IT WAS LIKE EATING FIRE. It was really spicy. I mean, I like spicy food, and so does Hoon, and this was quite spicy. Not unpleasantly spicy, but I can't fathom ever eating any level higher than that. I think I'd die.

We were sucking in air through our teeth and gulping 쿨피스 (Coolpis -- a fruit juice that is amazingly effective in countering extreme spice) after just two bites.

Even though it was spicy, it was really delicious. The chicken was cooked perfectly. It was not difficult to get off the bone (although if you are not adept at chopsticks use, I would recommend asking for a fork), and the carrots and potatoes were cooked like a dream. The noodles were probably the most spicy (the soak up all the sauce which makes them extra intense) but they were also SO delicious.

Afterwards, we added rice (which also had dried seaweed laver and tofu mixed in) and mixed it up. If you do go, I recommend ordering the rice at the end, after you finish your meal. It comes out really quickly, and that way its still piping hot when you add it to your slightly cooled sauce. We didn't do that, and it's a shame. IT was still good, but we imagine it'd be much much better if we had eaten it still hot...

On the whole, I would definitely recommend this to any spicy food lover traveling to Seoul. Also, I recommend it for anyone who is a big kpop/kdrama fan (just order the mild... it's listed under the main section on the left. It is less than one pepper, lol. The Right side is more spicy!!!) and is interested in looking at the pictures and even have a chance to glimpse a celebrity while you eat.

As for portions, 반마리 is half a chicken and it's enough for two-three people. There are two larger sizes, 한마리 and 한마리반 (one chicken, and 1 1/2 chicken respectively). For two-three people, you can order just one of the special rice dishes (남두 밥) and you'll be all set. Definitely add a 쿨피스 to cool you off if your feeling all spiced out!

Price: $$ for Korean food, it's a bit pricey. But for westerners, it's very reasonable for a dinner. 반마리 + 남두밥 + 쿨피스 came out to about 25,000 won, which is about 23.50usd, for two. A gut-bustingly filling meal for less than 12usd per person? Not too bad, I'd say. But, if you're pinching pennies, I'd say go for the bibimbap. lol

Food: *****/ 5 out of 5 - I don't have a lot to complain about with our food. The only complaint I'd have is that we foolishly ordered our rice too early (my fault). The flavor was excellent. Spicy but flavorful. Chicken was moist and tender. Vegetables thoroughly but not over-cooked. Noodles cooked perfectly.

Service: ****/ 4 out of 5 - There was nothing wrong with the service, but nothing to write home about. I think they are used to seeing celebrities and therefore treat their normal patrons with general indifference. Don't take that the wrong way. I just mean that some restaurants (not so many in Korea) treat their patrons with excellent service regardless. Here, in Korea in general, wait staff don't bend over backwards for their patrons. If you need them, call them. If you don't, don't expect them to check up on you because they won't.

Atmosphere: **** / 4 out of 5 - The decor was lovely. A nice mix of playful sophistication. The colors were good for the restaurant and the concept. The furniture was aesthetically pleasing. But it was a bit loud. I don't know if the acoustics of the restaurant need improving or if it's just a result of packing a few too many chairs into a restaurant. Some restaurants are meant to be loud an noisy. But the noise level didn't really fit the rest of what the restaurant, stylistically, seemed to be going for. In my opinion, they could stand to lose seating for maybe 5-8 patrons. I think that giving up that seating would make for a better atmosphere by far...

Overall: 4.5/5 I had a great time and it's definitely some place I'd recommend.

An assortment

So today I got off work early. My co-teacher, whom I call Mrs. Oh and is like my second mom, asked the vice-principal if I could go home early today. He said yes, so here we are.

So at about 12:30 I left school, with my new stuffed giraffe (thanks mom&dad!) under my arm. Got home, dropped off giraffe-y poo, and headed back out in search of food. I didn't really want korean food (even though I had some of the best donkasu in my life near Arts Center yesterday before Korean class) so I was kind of on the hunt for something different. I went to Sorrento (this mediocre italian chain) but the waiters were nowhere to be found, so I didn't get seated and I bounced.

While walking around, I almost gave up and headed to the nearest korean restaurant, but luck smacked me right in the face. Well, almost. I saw this japanese restaurant and walked towards it, but it was almost empty, and there were lots of plaques that certified the restaurant was "good for international visitors" which basically means is over-priced and not very good, so I quickly walked away. While headed away from the japanese restaurant, I stumbled across a sign that read La Famiglia. ITALIAN food! Well, here, italian food is usually a shot in the dark. More often than not it's pretty sub-par or just average and really really expensive. I was feeling optimistic though. Walked over, and headed up the stairs. I was pleasently surprised to see the red painted walls on the stairwell up, decorated with small pictures of various pasta dishes and a worn white metal banister. Went inside and found a restaurant that was small (max seating: 30 maybe) and cozy, without being overly done-up or cutesy, the eternal blessing and curse of Korea. White walls, blue plush chairs, snapshots of the restaurants OWN food, small pots of herbs on a wide, bright windowsill, and four glass jars of various pastas: ziti, bowtie, spaghetti, and the like. I ordered the Pane (pasta alfredo in a bread bowl) and a cider. This was the lunch special. For 11,000 won, I had a hearty pasta dish with a just spicy enough alfredo sauce and a mildly sweet bread bowl. Another couple who was there ordered a pizza that looked positively DELISH. The only real downside was that the garlic bread they also gave me was painfully sweet, as is traditional and accepted here in the land of the morning calm (and sugar and garlic combinations). I had a wonderful lunch, alone, but wrapped up in John Steinbeck's Cannery Row which thus far has been nothing less than a beautiful piece of fiction just like all of his other works, which I'm truly falling in love with.

Here are the pictures for you ravenous people you:

 

Afterwards I did my usual, that is, studying Korean at a coffee shop for a couple hours. Here are some various pictures I've taken over the last few days/weeks, but haven't yet posted anywhere.

you know, this is how ALL my afternoons look these days. Earmuffs, coffee, korean. Add an ipod to the mix and you've got it!

 

Early morning on my walk to work. You can see the moon.

 
 

These are the Valentines I made for my friends here in Incheon. The one on the left is a BIG BANG card, and the one on the right, 2PM. Kpop reppin'

 
 

I'm finally figuring out how to do my own-make-up. My hair, which is crazy here, is a different story. This was when I went to the club the day before v-day.

 
 

Mmmmm, Valentines Day Dinner at Outback

 
 

Converse shoe sculpture (it's suppose to look like a converse shoe) at COEX mall in Seoul.

That's it for me here!

xoxo

A