Five tastes generally describe Korean food: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and spicy. But did you know Koreans have another sense of taste? This intriguing sense is called siwonhan-mat (시원한 맛), which is the refreshing sensation that courses through the nerves of the tongue, stomach, and even the intestines when eating. In other words, this is the sense of … Read more
These days drinking is frowned upon by health experts all over the world. But in South Korea, oftentimes refusing to drink is frowned upon. Drinking after a long workday— Koreans typically work 10-12 hours a day— is part of the daily grind here. If you’re working here and you’re not up for it, that could … Read more
Many Koreans both young and old enjoy lingering for an hour or two over a café latte, especially on weekend afternoons. In the evenings, bigger cafes in Seoul usually sell bottles of beer and cake by the slice. Even during the holidays and in the middle of summer, Korean cafes are as crowded as ever. Nobody wants to … Read more
If you’ve ever been to Seoul, you’ve seen the evidence of thousands of coffee shops, one or two per corner. Over the last couple of decades, coffee has also managed to invade the homes of millions of Koreans, and stage several annual coffee festivals in Seoul and all across Korea. Korean coffee culture has gained … Read more
Seoul is bursting at the seams with people and palaces (we’ve got 5) and places to eat. We must have at least one citizen from every country— sometimes we even send them to represent their embassies at trade shows. But when that trade show is for fine chocolate, well, you know you moved to the correct … Read more