Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Summer Wine]

Quote:

By Lincoln Tan The South Korean Government is hoping a new Korean period drama, which started screening on New Zealand screens last night, will help with its plan on making Korean food among the world's top five cuisines by 2017. The 54-episode series, Dae Jang Geum (Jewel in the Palace), takes place during the Chosun dynasty 500 years ago, and gives an insight into Korean culture and its cuisine. "The cuisine shown in the series will bring back a lot of memories of the food our mothers use to cook, but I think it will also be introducing Hansik, or Korean food to Kiwis of other cultures," says consul Key Sun Shin, from South Korea's Auckland consulate office. Last year, the Korean Government decided to increase the number of Korean restaurants overseas from 10,000 to 40,000 by 2017, to get Korean dishes into the top five cuisines in the world, Seoul's Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said. Mr Shin said Korean restaurant owners running non-Korean restaurants were being asked to include a Korean menu, and Korean restaurants were also being asked to include an English description of their dishes. Korean Society spokeswoman Audrey Chung said Dae Jang Geum received top ratings in South Korea, and has a following in Singapore and Taiwan. "Sometimes for Koreans, we find it hard to share our culture with New Zealanders because our English is not so good," Ms Chung said. "So we are excited and hopeful that this series will help Kiwis understand us better." Karen Kim, a former Korean restaurant owner, says the success of the series will determine whether she re-starts her business. "Unlike Japanese or Indian food, Kiwis are often unsure about stepping into a Korean restaurant because they are unfamiliar with the food, so we need whatever help we can get to promote Korean food," Mrs Kim said. "It is also very difficult for us to describe the dishes to our customers because of our limited English, and some of the Korean ingredients doesn't have an English name." Jewel in the Palace started screening last night and will screen twice weekly at 9pm, Sundays and Tuesdays, on Stratos and Triangle Television. It tells of the story of Jang Geum, a girl who rose from the lower classes to a coveted position in the royal kitchens, eventually becoming the King's personal doctor."

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10604034

Just for once, can't they be subtle about thier desires. You don't have to tell everyone, why dont you let them discover it on thier own.

[benji]

I just dont see too many Kiwis watching one of those Korean period dramas. And exactly who decides what the "top five" cuisines in the world are and what are the criteria? Koreans go too far with their ranking obsession. Ridiculous.

[Troutslayer]

Why is it Korea wants the world to embrace all things Korean but is not capable of embracing and accepting other things the world has to offer?


slayer of trout

[DWAEJIMORIGUKBAP]

[roadwork]

And actually that isn't a new drama. It was playing when I first got here in 2003. The episodes where she is the personal cook are good, but once she becomes a nurse, the show drags on.

[AussieGav]

54 episodes, wow that's a hell of a commitment. Top 5, that's a tall order too given some of the more popular global cuisines.

[Whitey Otez]

How random is 2017? One of the basic tenets of great business is to under-promise and over-deliver. So if it's 2009, you say ten years and if it happens in eight, then you look awesome.

Also, by whose authority is the Korean government going to base its ranking? A google search for top five world cuisines yields 28.4 million hits. I'm sure they can get into at least one of those lists by 2017.

[Summer Wine]

Quote:

How random is 2017? One of the basic tenets of great business is to under-promise and over-deliver. So if it's 2009, you say ten years and if it happens in eight, then you look awesome.

If they make the top 5 in the next 20 years, I would be surprised. There is a Korean restaurant in my town. It advertises itself as Japanese with a couple of dishes of Korean food. It has a Korean Chef though, bought in specially from Seoul.

The Bibimbap is sold for $18.00 and is not named that, though unless you have lived in Korea, how to eat it may need an explanation, e.g what is this bowl of hot sauce for? Do I just eat the veges on top of the rice first or mix it in?

Bulgogi costs about $30. Kimbab is advertised as sushi. They dont have samgyupsal or galbitong, etc. Anything that may go over with foriegners and get them interested in the food.

If they go exactly the korean method of using hot paste in most dishes, then it may not be totally attractive to people who have a choice of spicy food with intermingled tastes. I liked it, but then I am used to hot paste in my food, but its definitely something you have to grow to like. Plus, in my town, you can get Thai for $10 a plate, Indian for $12 a plate and Chinese Buffet all you can eat for $14 dollars. Taste aside, just the cost of the food doesn't make it something that people would eat every day.

There is a Japanese restaurant in town, its owned by a Japanese Korean. Its about the same price as the Korean restaurant, but its really decked out as a mini Japan. Korean could do better in my country, but its going to take a better cost than what I have seen.

Plus, I have been into a few korean restaurants since coming home, they sure don't smile when seeing you enter and its only after you ask for something in Korean, that they seem to think that you are in the right place. Though its funny asking a person a question in Korean and getting the answer in english.

[fermentation]

[Jane]

There's a 'Korean barbecue' chain in Toronto and it is owned by Chinese. The food isn't exactly authentic, but it's a good meal if you don't mind the inconsistencies.

I was at a street festival in Toronto last summer, and I saw a booth selling Korean food. However, the food did not have Korean names: gimbap was 'sushi', japchae was 'glass noodles' and the chicken on a stick was 'teriyaki chicken'. The workers were Korean and I asked them why they don't use Korean names and they said, nobody will know what the food is.

[DWAEJIMORIGUKBAP]

There are some Korean restaurants in London, mostly Soho, Chinatown and Tottenham Court Rd areas.

Some are godawful. They all use Korean names and non of this pretending to be Japanese stuff. The food's names are Korean and the food looks Korean but they use Chinese ingredients and it tastes nothing at all like Korean food.

There are also some very good ones. I always judge by walking in and closing my eyes. If it smells like I'm in a restaurant in Korea - then I know the food is going to be authentic. They're pricey, I'd say around 10 pounds (20,000 Won) for sundooboo chiggae with rice and kimchi, but I'd pay it for a good Itai or Indian or Chinese, so I don't mind too much as an occaisional treat.

There are also a few gimbap / bibimbap chains starting up in London (or there were a few years back, last time I was there.) They market themselves as health food or vegetarian's choice. Don't know how well they're doing though and I remember the rpices were high for what was on offer. I can't imagine many Londoners wanting to hand over a fiver or more for some bland rice and vegetables with a bit of red paste....

[orosee]

Korean food is okay and there are a few nice items on the menu, but seriously - #5 cuisine? I know personal taste varies but here's my top list - I don't see how Korean food can push anything from the first 5 slots into which I put in rotation:

Italian
Thai
Vietnamese
Japanese
Mediterranean (can be split into Greek, Turkish, North African)
Chinese
Indian / Malay
German
French (just the bread, cheese, wine & olive oil bits)
US American (Meats)
Spanish

If you hand over the sushi & sashimi to the Japanese, that leaves for me Bibimbap and Galbi. Korean is great for the many side dishes.

[DWAEJIMORIGUKBAP]

^^^^ You wouldn't class Italian or Spanish or Portuguese as 'Mediterraenean...?'

[orosee]

[DWAEJIMORIGUKBAP]