Monday, February 4, 2008

Oysters in Seoul - part 1

This past trip to Seoul was so short yet action packed. Everything now seems like a blur. The one thing that I will remember since it stands out so much from this past trip to Seoul is the quality and quantity of OYSTERS that I consumed. 


The first oyster encounter happened on our first night.  As mentioned in an earlier post, we arrived in Seoul at midnight and being tired, we decided to eat at the bar at our hotel (Timber house at the Park Hyatt Seoul).  Not many things were available as the kitchen was pretty much closed, so we ordered the oysters. We were somewhat doubtful as to whether the oysters would be fresh. After all, it was after hours. But boy were we surprised!! The oysters that we had might have been the best that I had ever had. (See pic. Sorry about pic quality.)
 I am not entirely sure what type of oysters they were. I think Korean oysters are a type of Pacific oyster? Tastes mineral-y like a Kumamoto, but much bigger and meatier. Maybe 85% size of a Bluepoint? 

The presentation was great too with the shell totally covered. And 3 sauces came on the side, a vinegar, a soy sauce based sauce and a vinegary Korean hot sauce (i.e. cho-kochujang).  No lemon or cocktail sauce.  Everything was so delicious.  Probably because the oysters were so fresh and flavorful.  My husband, Josh proclaimed it the best oysters he had ever had. And I had to agree. They were absolutely divine. 

We vowed to come back there for one more feasting, except that we found yet another place for oysters where the oysters were almost as good, but quite a bit cheaper. (Was not cheap at the Hyatt....) 

Part 2 of the oyster story to come... 

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