A broken tulip

Guess where I went after work today?

Korean barbeque!

We went as a group of three girls: one Korean and two Canadians. Prior to Moody, I knew almost nothing about Korean people. That is happily being remedied! I have heard people rave about Korean barbeque. Today was my first fully Korean meal, and it was far beyond what I expected!

All tables in the restaurant have a heated element in the centre. As we sat around it, the waitress brought many small side dishes (spicy radishes, bean sprouts, pickled cucumbers, seaweed, special potatoes, etc.) and a platter of very thinly sliced beef. Song, our Korean friend, kept cooking portions of the beef in a stone frying pan with garlic. Using chopsticks, we dipped the cooked meat into a mixture of sesame oil and salt, added some green onions and bean paste, and devoured it!

The word “barbeque” has always conjectured in my mind massive quantities of meat, large portions, messy fingers. This was a completely different experience: clean fingers, and tiny pieces of meat eaten out of a small white dish that kept getting refilled!

When we were done the beef, the waitress emptied kimchi, a chili sauce, vegetables, rice, and more sesame oil into our pan. That fried together, and was like our “second course”. The variety within our meal blew me away. I am now indebted to Korean food for introducing me to new worlds of taste!

Looking around the small restaurant, I saw several Korean families sharing meals, and some groups of adults talking and laughing. I loved the communal aspect.

We had a great time over the meal. I left to tell the tale with a blurry picture and a full tummy.