Seoul Living: The irony of being "away"

You can't escape it.

Chalk it up to globalization, but it is harder and harder to fully leave home behind, as evidenced by this cafe, which is - ironically! - just steps away from my language school.

One of the evident things about Seoul is that it is absolutely packed with Western (specifically, US) chain restaurants. Starbucks is here in a big way, but so are Dunkin Donuts, Krispy Kreme, Ruby Tuesday, Outback Steakhouse, Bennigans, Papa Johns and any other western chain you can think of...and within a one mile radius if you live where I do!

Good news for Americans: you can get a fat ass with that cup of coffee anywhere you go! (side of chocolate munchkins to go, please)

There is also a fascination with Italian pasta, pizza, and especially French bakeries that seems a bit weird, too. Or, maybe it's just the many Korean shops and chains that have French words in the title. Anyhoo, I hear Tous Les Jours Bakery and Paris Baguette aren't bad, despite the Korean penchance to make every thing they eat a little sweet (or, as the Koreans say, "sweety" :).

I'll eat enough McDonalds abroad to make up for my avoidance of it at home.

But the Korean twist on Western menu items is often what's really fun. McDonalds in Korea has the typical Big Mac and chicken nuggets, but also has a "spicy" menu that tries to incorporate the hot red pepper flavor that Koreans love. There's also the bulgogi burger, as well as a shrimp burger. I think McDonalds got rid of the kimchi burger, but maybe I can still go to Lotteria to try it out. Lotteria is the local Korean competitor to Mickey Dee's, and it sure looks a heck of a lot tastier. I can try the shrimp or squid burgers while I'm at it.

I've determined that eating localized versions of Western food is sometimes as fun as trying the local eats. I mean, the tomato sauce might be oddly sugary, but when are you going to get squid on your pizza again? I'll look forward to that.