Korean Job Discussion Forums

Eazy_E · Joined: 30 Oct 2003 Location: British Columbia, Canada

I'm a West-coaster who's used to getting the comfort and caffeine fix of a cup of REAL coffee in the morning. I wasn't in Korea for long before I realized that it's difficult to come by. Coffee to Koreans is the sugary, heavily creamered instant stuff that comes in packets. They're cheap, convenient, and taste good, and they're starting to grow on me. That doesn't change the fact that they're NOT coffee!

I'd like to hear how other coffee fanatics get their fix. I tried buying the ground beans at Starbucks, but it's too expensive to do that all the time. I live quite a ways from Seoul. Should I just get used to the instant stuff? Help!

dulouz · Joined: 04 Feb 2003 Location: Uranus

I know you don't like this but I buy from Starbucks. One bag for 13,000 lasts me a month. I buy one kind...Sulaweisi. I have been buying it for 10 years. Yea, the coffee is crap. I agree.

schwa · Joined: 18 Jan 2003 Location: Yap

Even smaller cities have an 'import' shop or 2 & while their selection of goods is none too exciting they usually carry some decent coffee. Richville brand (from Lotte) isnt bad. My local shop carries whole bean Colombian & grinds it for me there. A kilo runs maybe 18000.

Me too, I've grown accustomed to the taste & convenience of coffee mix, but I do like to start my day with a pot of the real thing, black.

kimcheeking · Guest

I buy my starbucks roasted 1kg bag for 15,000.

desultude · Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2003 5:37 am Post subject:

Go to Home plus or Emart and buy a french press coffee maker (its the one with a glass carafe and plunger.) If you don't know what it is now, check it out at Starbucks. (Starbucks has the same coffee maker, for twice the price.) Get a bag of some dark roasted Starbucks, have them grind it for the french press pot (it matters to have the coffee ground for your coffee maker). Also get one of the measuring spoons Starbucks sells, one measure is good for a small pot (the side of mine says three, but it is one decent-sized cup of coffee. As someone else said, a bag of Starbucks, I think that it may be 12oz., should last you three weeks to a month at one cup each morning.

I went without for months, now I have a good cup every morning. It costs about 500 won per day- not really much at all.

Harpeau · Joined: 01 Feb 2003 Location: Coquitlam, BC

simulated stereo · Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2003 4:22 pm Post subject:

Some like minded friends and I put our cash together and order a case of Maxwell House Neo Khan--dark Italian roast.. Each case contains 6 two kilo bags and the cost is about 24,000 won per bag.

Eazy_E · Joined: 30 Oct 2003 Location: British Columbia, Canada

Starbucks may be the best bet right now. The 1 kg bag seems expensive, but when you figure out the price per cup it's not really that bad. I think I have some Timmy's on the way from Canada courtesy of my family. Thanks for the replies!

kimcheeking · Guest

If you buy your starbucks roast at starbucks it is about 20,000 won for 454 grams... if you buy it at Costco it is 15,500 won for 900 grams. costco only gives you a choice of two different roasts though.

desultude · Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2003 6:55 pm Post subject:

I have found that the Starbucks sold at Costco is really stale. I bought some coffee at Seattle's Best here in Daegu, and it was likewise stale.

The only good FRESH coffee I have found here is from the Starbucks store. When you calculate the price of making it yourself at home, it is a minor luxury that most of us can easily afford. It is significantly less than having coffee out, even lousy coffee out.

ohahakehte · Joined: 24 Aug 2003 Location: The State of Denial

i just go for my daily cappucino at the grand mart across from my school. im a regular there and have a nice relationship with the "coffee lady." ive gone there so much that she's started to give me "service." sure, the capuccino might not be as good and as strong as some stuff ive had back in north america, but i really cant complain. im a big coffee snob, and wouldnt dream of consuming that stuff in an envelope, no matter how sweet it is.

i dont know about anyone else here who might be canadian, but my favourite spot in toronto was Ideal on Nassau in Kensington Market. totally scaled-down hippie joint that looks like someone's kitchen it's so informal. but their coffee is nice and strong and cheap. i'd like to find an equivalent place in seoul, cause grand mart isn't as good, but no luck yet

anyone know of a similar place?

Yaya · Joined: 25 Feb 2003 Location: Seoul

I also hear from Europeans that American coffee (and beer) tastes like piss water, too. I don't drink coffee so can anyone share their opinions on this?

erlyn · Joined: 08 Jun 2003 Location: Incheon, South Korea

I think a lot of European countries like a dark roasted coffee, which naturally has a stronger taste (although, curiously enough, has less caffeine) than lighter roasts, which is the sort of "average" coffee that most places (ie. fast food, Dunkin Donuts, as well as most grocery store brands of coffee) serve. Starbucks offers a lot of darker roasts, although I'm not familiar with how often those are the "Coffee of the Day". Also, coffee such as espresso tends to be served in a very concentrated form, unless it's mixed with milk for a latte or a cappuccino. A smaller amount of water is pushed quickly through a portion of coffee, resulting in a dense shot of pure coffee flavour in a small cup. Most North Americans seem to prefer their coffee brewed, with lots of water being brewed through a smallish amount of ground beans. This, along with a taste for lighter roasts, may result in the "piss water" taste the Europeans are referring to. Also, there's a lot of crap coffee being drunk out there, mainly because it's cheaper.

As for the beer, I can't really say.

desultude · Posted: Mon Nov 24, 2003 5:14 pm Post subject:

I don't know why people in the U.S. like such weak coffee. It has changed a bit, as Starbucks has dotted the landscape. As much as I hate the McDonalds nature of Starbucks, it has changed coffee tastes for the better. I remember before Starbucks came to Manhattan, and outside of Little Italy it was impossible to buy good coffee. I got a "cafe latte" at the Met one time that tasted like heated milk, it was so weak.

Now if you want really good strong coffee in the U.S., for fifty cents, you have to go to Miami and pony up to any corner downtown. A colada or a cortadito will wire you for the day.

ohahakehte · Joined: 24 Aug 2003 Location: The State of Denial

i dont understand the liking for weak coffee either. i guess some people feel that dark roasts are too strong, maybe it makes heartburn worse or something? ive been told by coffee conoisseurs that weaker coffee (light roasts) has noticeably more caffeine. they say you can feel it on your tongue after you drink it. i cant stand the taste of weak piss coffee. its like drinking .5 alcohol beer after you're used to guiness.

its true about europe. finding perculator drip coffee in a place like france or belgium or holland is hard. they all guzzle their espressos. i think its great. you get the great taste of strong espresso w/ less dehydrating coffee in your body at the same time