Korean Job Discussion Forums

[kimchi story]

Friday evenings I do two things: I hit the gym to get rid of the residual fog in my head from the week at work and then I go for an indulgent meal. The standard has been the Buddy for a burger - I like to get there before it picks up and have a fairly quiet meal. After nine months of this I decided to take a risk today and check out Nicolia.

On the walk there - about ten minutes from GS Square - I played 'If I were in heaven what would I find'. The answer was a wicked good chicken caesar salad and a Hoegaarden. I got that, and then some.

I'll keep it short: this place has an authenticity to it that is rare and valuable. In the most positive way, when you step into the restaraunt you are stepping out of Korea and into a place that feels like home - no matter where you are from. This doesn't come from the exclusion of locals, but from the absence of any agro expat verve. The owner is a friendly and unassuming Oxfordian, the decor is flawless and imaginative, the caesar salad was zesty and fresh - everything just works.

I'm a cheap bastard and I don't normally carry a lot of won, so when it came time to ante up I made sure he took a credit card, just in case. He does. I didn't need it, the prices were exactly what I'd hoped they would be. I'll pay 11 grand for a decent burger and a Cass, and I figured this meal would be more than double. It wasn't. It was less than a martini at Tribecca, and that impresses me.

More importantly, I left the place glowing - so much that on the way home I decided to go all out and pick up a bottle of quality scotch to preserve the lingering taste of the first truly fantastic western meal I've had in Korea.

If you're in the area around dinner time on a Friday, I'm the guy with the TLS and the Hoegaarden. I'll prolly have a gammon board in my bag if you like to play.

[swetepete]

Wish that place was around when I lived in Bucheon. Burger Buddy's too goddamn loud.

[Ilsanman]

I don't ask for a lot. As long as the owner isn't a total *beep*, like some other place, I'd go for it at least once.