Asian Fusion @ Zen Hideway, Seoul.

Zen Hideaway is stylish yet casual restaurant serving Asian fusion cuisine. Korean, Thai, Chinese and Japanese mainly. It's a firm favorite of mine because the food is always fresh and flavorful. There are three branches located in Apgujeong, Hongdae and Myeongdong.

Salmon and Vegetable Rolls.

Chicken Salad.

Pan seared Tenderloin with Pineapple.

The menu is extensive and seasonal; it changes a little depending on ingredients that are available. It always includes various salads, sushi and stir-fried rice and noodle dishes. It's moderate to expensive in price. Salads big enough for two to share come in around 16,000won, a plate of sushi rolls between 8,000-12,000won and stir-fried steak or seafood based dishes from 14,000 to 22,000won. There are of course some pricier options such as the pan seared steak with pineapple (pictured above) which cost close to 30,000 won.

The restaurants' unique interiors are part of the reason to visit these popular hotspots. Like their name, Zen Hideaway, these restaurants have been designed to evoke a feeling of peacefulness and tranquility. They successfully do just that. They're light and airy inside with lots of water features and lush plants. The most impressive interior is that of the Apgujeong branch. It has a large pond in the center of the restaurant which is open air during warmer months.

This restaurant is extremely popular with the young and trendy crowd so making a reservation is recommended, especially if you plan to visit during dinner hours or at the weekend. If you don't make a reservation there are waiting areas but I've seen queues build up quite rapidly, so you've been warned!

You can see the location of the three branches of Zen Hideaway at www.zenhideaway.com.

Zen Hideaway Apgujeong
02-541-1461

Zen Hideaway Myeongdong
02-776-1461

Enjoy!

 

Salt Coke Casual Lounge Bar @ Rodeo, Apgujeong, Seoul.

Salt Coke is a relatively new bar on Rodeo in Apgujeong. It's getting increasingly more popular because of the cheap drink prices in an area that is otherwise usually pretty pricey. I stopped in for a few drinks the other day. The bar itself has a trendy feel, it's minimal and mostly white. There's a dj playing on weekends. There's also a few projector screens playing movies, Toy Story was playing on the one by me. Awesome! The music was good and the bar was moderately busy. I think it will get much busier as more people hear about it though.

Cocktails start at 5,000 won and go up to9,000 for Mojitos. In this area you'd usually pay at least double that. They also offer various bottle sets. An Absolute Vodka set is 69,000 won including mixers and a choice of side dishes. So if you want a bar that still feels like Apgujeong without the price tag head here.

 
Salt Coke is located in the middle of rodeo where it turns a corner. You can take the subway to Apgujeong station on line 3 or Gangnam-gu Office on line 7. Here's a map to help you out.

View SaltCoke Lounge Bar in a larger map

Remember to find Seoulsome and like the page on Facebook. Enjoy!

Best Cupcakes Yet @ Royal Cupcake, Cheongdam.

I interrupt the Halloween themed news to bring you my latest love, Royal Cupcake in Cheongdam.

Cupcakes themselves are not a new love for me. I was previously a big fan of Good Ovening Cupcake store but in recent months I've started to notice it going downhill. When I first sampled their offerings, a couple of years back, they were much softer, prettier and even a tad bigger. Now it's a bit hit and miss depending on the day you go. A good day and they're fine but get the wrong day and you could end up with a dry and crumbly cupcake. Not the funnest gambling ever. The decorations have become less and less colorful lately too. I don't know how you feel about this, but I feel pretty passionate about cupcakes and believe a cupcake should not only taste great it should look great too. That's the whole point really, otherwise you might as well just get...well...cake.

I was still going to Good Ovening, playing the cupcake lottery, because...quite frankly...I didn't have a better option! You'll see a lot of imposter cupcakes (cream topped sponge buns, hate those little cheats) in Seoul but the real deal butter-cream type are not that common.

I finally found my answer. Royal Cupcake. The cupcakes are simply put...incredible! The cake part is soft, springy and light. The buttercreams come in a variety of different flavours and are all so smooth you wonder how they do it. Not only are the cupcakes pretty as can be but the store itself is exactly how a cupcake store should be, truely charming. It's very whimsical and girly. Not the place for a guys trip but bring your date or girlfriend here and she'll be smitten, I promise!

Double Choco Fudge Cupcake - Chocolate sponge with chocolate fudge butter-cream.
Miss Cookie Monster Cupcake - Chocolate chip sponge with strawberry butter-cream.

Next on my cupcake hit list - Coconut Panda...too cute to eat?? No, I don't think so.

Online Costume Store for Halloween in Korea.

A few people sent me messages asking about more options for places to get Halloween costumes in Korea. Today I came across a decent online costume store. With Halloween 2011 approaching quickly I thought some people who can't make it to a store may find it useful.

Although the site is only in Korean there are some English sub headings and it's easy to navigate and see the costumes.

They have both men's and women's costumes including all the staple Halloween choices for women (read slutty Halloween choices) like army girl, nurse, maid, Wonderwoman, fairy, angel, devil, witch and various Disney characters.

Some seem to be priced in keeping with the average price in England and America whilst some are pretty expensive. Sizing depends on the costume, some are 'one size' whilst others have a choice of small, medium and large. I've also seen a few listed in XL. 

Here are a few screen grabs to give you a small idea of what the site's offering;

Some of the costumes available.