Kim Yuna Takes The Cake

Seems like the folks at Life Is Just A Cup Of Cake have taken Yuna's gold medal win to heart and created a special cup cake to commemorate her triumphs. I would say she looks good enough to eat, but I think she's made of cardboard...

Popolarita And Its Inventive and Beautiful Menu

Strolling round the French quarter of Seoul this afternoon I came across a delightful little "French, Italian Ristorante & Cafe" called Popolarita. While I didn't have time to partake of their lunchtime treats I did enjoy perusing their menu boards...



I quite like the sound of an "appetiger", dangerous yet delicious.



Is it Gallic or Garlic bread I wonder... after all we are in the French part of town...



Oh Popolarita you spoil us with your "meat-fresh burger" and "coated potato", though your overlarge king prawn wrap-roll does scare me somewhat.



Unfortunately option B sounds like a rather challenging brunch set. I'm not sure how seafood omelet, maple syrup and banana fit together and I don't think I'm brave enough to find out...

If any of you, my dear readers, are courageous enough to take the Popolarita brunch challenge please let me know how you get on.

Tasty Temptations At Vinestock

I've been hearing a lot about Vinestock over the past few months, mostly from Dan over at Seoul Eats, and I finally decided to take a trip down to Banpo-dong to search out this tiny gem of a store.

It took me a little while to find the anonymous looking building that holds Vinestock and I was a little worried about what to expect, but once there I was greeted with such warmth and kindness by the owners that I felt in very safe and very knowledgeable hands.

This relatively small shop is a treasure trove of oils, coffee, pastas, preserves and wines; containing some of the finest food and drink you can find on the peninsula. The prices are high, but the products are of a better quality than you'll find in other wine boutiques, delis and department stores in Seoul.

I was treated to a tasting of some of the olive oils Vinestock have on offer and was blown away by the beautiful flavours that the Terre Bormane range have to offer. The Riviera Ligure Extra Virgin Olive Oil D.O.P. is perhaps the best (and one of the rarest with only 6,000 bottles produced every year) I have ever tasted, but at 54,500 won for half a litre it is a large investment for an impoverished thespian. I shall be saving my pennies to purchase my own...



Instead I splashed out on a jar of Galateo and Friends Ligurian pesto for 31,300 won. All natural and tasting sublime, this pricey little jar will become the main feature of some simple suppers this spring.



Onto the wine! Starting at 36,500 won and rising up to 900,000 won I was slightly intimidated by this superior selection. However, Thomas Scheidt (the resident wine expert) was on hand to calm my fears and talk me through their cellar.



We talked about food and wine pairings and after taking his advice I settled on one of the more economically priced bottles. Le Fruit Defendu (coming in at 36,500 won) is excellent with Korean dishes, especially grilled intestines, according to Thomas. I'll be trying it next week, so I'll have to put my thinking cap on as to what to serve it with...

To my surprise along with my two purchases the owners threw in a free wine glass, a slightly damaged bag of pasta (there was a tiny hole in the bag) and a wine pourer. I spent a delightful thirty minutes with them and will definitely be coming back once I've saved up some cash.

Vinestock may not be for the cash strapped amongst us, but is well worth the visit if you love food and wine and are willing to pay a little extra to get top quality. They also run wine tastings every other Saturday or so offering selections of wine along with homemade food. Join their group on Facebook for all the latest news and events listings. To get there head down to Sorae Village (close to the Gangnam Express Bus Terminal) and take the side street opposite Paris Croissant. Take the first right and Vinestock is on the fourth floor of the building on the corner above Kitchen Flo. You can find a Korean map here.

My Other Favourite Magician

Apologies... Two posts in one day about non-Korea related magic may be anathema to you, but I'm on a roll so please indulge me.

Back when I was an impoverished student living in London I dreamt of going to see "Ricky Jay and his 52 Assistants", but he always played to a sold out house and I never got a chance to witness his skills in the flesh. I've bought a number of his books, searched out his television appearances, sat through David Mamet's films for a glimpse of his corpulent excellence, but await the day I can sit in close proximity to this marvelous performer.

If anyone would care to buy me a copy of "Cards As Weapons" or "Learned Pigs & Fireproof Women" I'll be forever in your debt, but until you do this video of his show on Youtube will have to suffice.

Here it is for anybody who fancies an online audience with Mr. Jay and his 52 friends (Part 5 is notable for his watermelon attack and Part 6 has a gorgeous rendition of the cups and balls trick):

Part 1

Part 2



Part 3



Part 4



Part 5



Part 6

My New Favourite Magician

This has nothing to do with Korea, but I was absolutely mesmerized by this video:

Lennart Green is hands down one of the best close up card magicians I've seen and this half hour presentation at TED is well worth a watch. There's even Korean subtitles available for those inclined...

Ajosshi Update

With only twelve posts logged so far in 2010 I've been a little lax when it comes to blogging. Apologies to anyone who has been offended, disappointed or downright disgusted by my lackadaisical attitude; please smack me on the bot-bot and I promise to do better from here on in.

Last night saw the end to our season of "Strange Soup" (where I had the pleasure of playing a green alien kleptomaniac twin) and the closing to a quite hectic and productive chapter of my life. In the last six months I've lost 16 kilograms (but gained 1 back), got a couple of exciting translation proposals, finally sorted out an F2 visa, eaten raw fish marinated in makgeolli, perfected my rib making skills, read far too many Russian fantasy horror novels, been slapped in the face twice daily, eaten extraordinary amounts of fake poo and have been made workshop director for an exciting new project at our theatre. Now it's time for all sorts of even more interesting things to happen, including getting up off my bottom and spending more time on this blog.

So dear reader, hopefully over the coming weeks you'll see an increase in dazzling death defying detailed deliveries of dastardly devised documents. Be careful, there may be alliteration involved...

BONUS FAKE POO RECIPE: Take three large spoonfuls of 미숫가루 (a powder made from mixed grains), one large teaspoon of hot chocolate powder and mix thoroughly. Add hot water, little by little, constantly stirring with a chopstick until you get your desired consistency. For added fun dress up as a green alien twin and smear the poo all over your fellow twin's face whilst singing about how sweet it is... Repeat twice a day in front of a large audience...

Hey, diddly-dee, an actor's life for me!

Paul Ajosshi pictured with "Paul Ajosshi Finger Puppet" provided by costume designer extraordinaire 이종행. Available in all poor quality toy shops now...

An Open Letter...

Dear Delightful Canadians Who I Passed On The Street This Morning,

Congratulations! You won! Who knew it would go this way? What an exciting time for us all and what a way to finish up a very special Winter Olympics. 3-2 in a nail biting finish, Crosby pulled out all the stops and Canada ends up with 14 Gold medals. I know the emotional rollercoaster you're on; I felt the same way when Vanessa Redgrave received a fellowship from BAFTA last weekend. It's a big day and everyone is entitled to celebrate in their own way.

As I trotted down the road from my house in Itaewon towards Hannam-dong I spotted several of your compatriots smiling and filled with joy, it made me feel good to see them in such a celebratory mood. My heart warms when others are happy, it puts a spring in my step and a song in my soul. Seeing them made the day seem brighter despite the mixture of snow, rain and blasting wind that surround us. I felt at peace with the world, I felt a brotherhood with Canada, I felt pretty bloody good... and then I saw you.

Everyone likes a drink (except for those who don't) and I can often be spotted quaffing a beer or two when a big international sporting event comes on the box. It's good to mix alcohol with triumph, our fermented ecstasy takes us to a frothy nirvana where our worries disappear and we feel truly part of the team we support. Beer plus sports equals happy... in most cases.

9.30 in the morning on the main street of Itaewon is where I saw the five of you, in between the Rocky Mountain Tavern and the Fire Station. Most of you were very drunk, some of you wore Canadian hockey shirts and one of you was violent. No one got hurt (at least not when I passed by), but shop shutters were slammed into and noises were made. I think there may have been a few sweary words, but my delicate ears chose to block those out.

I expect that kind of behaviour at 2.00 in the morning on Hooker Hill, not at 9.30 in the morning on a busy street. Spirits may have been high, but your behaviour sank mine into despair.

I passed more of your fellow countrymen as I walked on and they were exemplary in their attitude and activities. I've met Canadians in the past, Roboseyo, for example, is a true gentleman and a genuinely nice bloke. In fact all the Canadians I've met until now have been lovely and friendly and a pleasure to know. You on the other hand, I wouldn't touch you with a barge pole.

Ask A Korean wrote a wonderful post recently about "How not to be an arrogant American". Substitute the word "Canadian" for "American" and it should guide you pretty well as to how to behave in polite society. In the words of 'Ask a Frenchman': "You represent your country, whether you like it or not." Your actions this morning encourage groups like this, help spawn articles like this and generally make you look like this.

Congratulations again on the gold medal and I hope I never see you again.

Lots of love,

Paul Ajosshi

Some Things Make Me Angry...

This advert makes me angry.

I'm not a fan of censorship, but I'm a big believer in corporate responsibility. The glamorization of suicide is not the nicest way to help you sell your fizzy water and let's not forget that South Korea has the highest suicide rate among the 30 OECD countries. What a classy method to advertise your product in the country that claimed nine celebrity suicides last year...

Congratulations Trevi (produced by Lotte Chilsung), you win the prize for sleaziest exploitation of unhappiness in a printed bus stop advertisement for 2010.

Mistaken Identity at the Naked Bar & Grill

Round the side of the Hamilton Hotel, tucked away in the sub-basement of a shabby little building is a rather sparkly new restaurant and bar.

Silvers and purples dazzle you as you enter the Naked Bar & Grill; this restaurant come cocktail hangout strives to be cool even though Shania Twain blares out of the speakers ever so slightly disturbing your lunchtime mood.

Like its sister restaurant in Hannam-dong, the Naked Bar & Grill's menu focuses on burgers, tacos and burritos ranging from 5,000 to 10,000 won. All very reasonably priced with only an extra 4,000 won to add fries and a soft drink. However I was feeling in the mood for something a little more Italian and decided to go for their "Twisted macaroni and cheese (fusilli pasta, grilled chicken)" at 16,000 won. At over three times the price of a taco I was sure to be treated to a spectacular dish, wasn't I? The concept of a fusilli and grilled chicken mutation of mac and cheese was too much to refuse and after previous experiences at Macaroni Market, I was expecting something exciting...

What came out looked appetizing and tasted wonderful. Crispy unsweetened garlic bread, perfectly tender grilled chicken and al dente fusilli served in a creamy delicious sauce. A beautifully cooked pasta dish that I'd happily order again, but, and this is a big but, it was nowhere near anything like macaroni and cheese...

Here's some advice for the Naked Bar & Grill: if you label a dish in a certain way, then the customer may well have certain expectations as to what the dish may be like. Using words such as "twisted" may lead your customer to expect certain changes or substitutions in the dish and said customer will probably be very happy to discover that an old favourite has been given a makeover. However if you promise a "Twisted macaroni and cheese" and serve a cream sauce pasta then you shouldn't be surprised if your customer is a little disappointed at receiving a dish which does not really have any relation to the name it has been given. Call me a pedant, go on I know you want to, but I expect my food to be given a moniker it deserves. If I order a "pepperoni pizza" I'm not expecting to be served a grilled cheese and salami sandwich.

I digress...

Gratuitous pickle shot.

The food was good, pricey, but delicious. I doubt you'll find a better grilled chicken breast in Itaewon and the service was very friendly and helpful. If you like casual dining with loud music and a nightclub atmosphere then Naked Bar & Grill could well be the place for you.

Naked Bar & Grill is just round the corner from the Hamilton Hotel, just turn right at KFC and it's on the left hand side of the alley. I couldn't get any contact details for them (no business cards as yet), but you could always give their Hannam-dong branch a ring on 02 749 4225.

James Cameron and His Korean Viral Campaign

James Cameron's Avatar has been sixteen years in the making and by the looks of this shop front in Gwangju, he started his viral marketing in Korea a little earlier than usual. The subliminal messages may be brutal, but have proven their worth in 12 million ticket sales on the Korean peninsula... You truly are King of the World, James... King of the World...