Vegetarian Buffet
- Take Bus 3215 across from the UOS and get off at Children’s Grand Park Rear Gate Station.
- On weekdays, 12,000 won per person, on weekends 16,000 won per person.
- http://go5.co.kr/main2/
Some people feel that somehow, something is missing when there is no meat served on the dining table. However, a meat-oriented eating habit may cause many ethical problems and is harmful to our health and environment. If you have eating habits where you have to eat meat with every meal, it is worth trying to eat only vegetable-oriented foods. Vegetarians are classified into five categories according to their way of life or the amount of carnivorous foods they consume. Among them, vegetarians who do not eat any carnivorous foods at all are called Vegans. The place I want to introduce is a vegetarian diet buffet for Vegans. In this restaurant, soy-based meat and sushi made of konjac are the most unique items on the menu because they are not usually found in any other restaurants. Vegans do not even eat dairy products or eggs. So this restaurant makes bread and cakes without using milk, eggs or butter. In my case, if I eat meat, I usually feel full all day long and have hard time digesting it. However, after I had meat made of beans and lots of fresh vegetables at this buffet, I did not get indigestion at all. The place also offered me a chance to think about the environmental and ethical advantages by not eating meat.
Dark Restaurants
- Take Bus 3220 or 3216 across from the UOS and get off at Konkuk Univ. Station.
- The cheapest menu is 29,500 won per person.
- http://www.blindrest.com
Nowadays, we are living in a world with too much visual stimulation. Therefore, amongst a visually-oriented everyday life, visiting a dark restaurant has a special meaning. You enter the restaurant by following a host with your hand on his shoulder. Though your eyes are open, you cannot see anything, which will make you feel anxious. However, after sitting down for a while, you will be able to calm down. During the 90 minutes people have to eat their meals, they can focus purely on the taste of the food using all of their senses except vision. After dinner, you will be given some time to leave letters to your companion in the darkness, which is also a part of the extraordinary experience. By eating at dark restaurants, you can think about what kind of fear and changes can be brought on by pitch blackness. Besides, you will indirectly experience the life of a blind person. There are only ten dark restaurants in the world, so I definitely recommend visiting one of these rare destinations.
Self-made Cocktail Bar
- Take subway line number 4 and get off at Sungshin Women’s Univ. Station. Go out exit number 1.
- Most cocktails you can make are about 7,000 won.
- http://cafe.naver.com/ithehada
A bartender shaking alcohol with exciting music in the background would be an interesting show by itself. You too can be a bartender like him! There is a bar where you can create your own cocktail. Thanks to a brochure that describes the kinds of cocktail and step-by-step instructions from a bartender, anyone can easily mix a cocktail. I made a Midori Shower and a Blue Hawaii. The way to mix them was stirring and shaking respectively which was fairly easy. Here is a tip for having more fun at the bar! It will remain one of the special memories at the place if you go there with your friends and exchange cocktails you made with them.
Small-scale music performances are held there every Friday night and there are cocktail club meetings on weekends that you are welcome to join. The bar is also available to be rented out for throwing parties. You can also bring outside food there. The bar is located so deep in an alleyway that it feels like a cozy hideout.
Yoon Hye-lin Reporter
dnr425@uos.ac.kr /
All photos credited by Yoon Hye-lin
Yoon Hye-lin
dnr425@uos.ac.kr