"I want to buy some cheese!" - Monty Python
| Where to shop | What to shop for |
In this first part, A Guide To Real Food In Korea, I will
provide you with a list of places to go, legitimate importers and
some not-so-legitimate resellers of foreign goods for those of us
who prefer real western food to Korean food. Knowing where
to get it is more than half the battle. By comparison, the
cost of the imported food (and it is high) is a non-issue.
In the second section, I have included a list of some items not found in Canada but are worth mentioning because they are of decent quality or are interesting. Or, I listed some everyday items that so you know what you can expect to find. It would be better to know before coming here what you can and can't eat. (Myself, I cannot eat anything indigenous to Korea, not one vegetable, hence my focus on food. It is a daily concern for me and others such as vegetarians.)
Where to shop
Ah, Carrefour, my lifeline to survival! Their mulitleveled
stores have housewares and food sections where you can find
just about everything you need. Many of the imported foods
come from Europe: they have a great selection of quality
beers and liquers, cheeses, pastas, canned goods and a
wealth of other things. They also sell the only decent
frozen pizzas ("Schlotzsky's Deli" brand) that
I have seen in Korea. (Koreans think potatoes, corn and
peas are traditional pizza toppings and try to tell me they
know Italian food better than I do. Pray tell, how many
Koreans grew up living next to Italian emigr�s...?)
Visit Carrefour's web site linked above to find its locations.
There are nine outlets in Seoul alone plus others throughout
the peninsula, so they shouldn't be too difficult to find.
If you have a Costco card, bring it with you! If you can,
get one! There's no better place to pick up quantities of
foods you need, especially in Korea where western goods
are scarce.
Yes, the Costcos have their lunch areas with the kosher hot
dogs and pizza, but their best features are inexpensive fresh
meats, the variety of canned and frozen goods, and bulk fruits
and vegetables. Also know that Costco is the only place in
Korea to buy tuna packed in water. All the Korean
brands are packed in a heavy oil.
There are three Costcos in Seoul, two near these subway stations
and the third I don't know: Yeongdeungpo-gu Office
on lines 2 and 5 (take Exit 3 from the subway station),
and Sangbong on line 7. Visit
Costco's web site, they have
maps and addresses of all their stores, including the one in Daegu.
There are a few Tescos-HomePlus outlets in Korea, though not in
Seoul as far as I know. Two can be found in Suwon and
one in Incheon, both an hour's ride away by subway.
When I visited Tescos in Thailand, it was wonderful: lots of
imported British goods and plenty of high quality products in
both the food and department store sections. Sadly, the Tescos
in Korea carry little or no western goods the last time I
visited them. Perhaps they have changed, I do not know,
so I mention them just in case.
All of the Hyundai Department Stores I have visited have
underground supermarkets. Most have import sections or have
imported goods on the shelves next to domestic products.
Hyundai stores are also notable for their selection of Japanese
imported goods. To my knowledge, no other stores carry them.
You will find their department stores in many shopping districts
throughout Seoul and on all the tourist maps, so I won't bother
listing their locations.
Some Shinsegae stores have underground supermarkets (the one
near Seoul Station does not) and they carry a small selection
of imported goods.
The Lotte Department Store at Euljiro-1 subway station
on Line 2 has an underground supermarket, and the other
department stores probably do as well. For the most part, it
is the same stuff you will find elsewhere. They do have an
import section but it is horribly overpriced, and the staff
have no concept of customer service.
Hannam Supermarket is one of my most frequent destinations.
There you will find many imported cheeses, canned goods,
baking goods, and other unique items. The main store and
the second smaller market in the same building are open
everyday, but there is also a proper western-style
delicatessen, the only one in Seoul as far as I know.
It is open six days per week, not on Sundays. (Koreans
tell me there are other delis, but I find Koreans don't
understand what a European-style deli is.... Hannam is the
only real one in Seoul.) The only knock on this deli
section is the overpriced and lousy bread they sell. The
meats and cheeses are expensive, but of good quality and I
have expensive tastes.
One of my favourite things at Hannam is the freezer case and
the imported bagels, one of few places to get decent bread.
Maple Leaf brand bagels imported from Canada, six in
a bag and heavy enough to knock someone cold. It's as good
as you'll get in Korea.
To go there, take subway Line 6 to Hangangjin
station. Use exit 2 and the overpass to head toward the
Volvo building. Hannam supermarket is in the basement
next door. Look for the 1 on the map below.
Haddon House is similar to Hannam Supermarket in more than name.
Many imported canned and boxed goods can be found here, some that
I have not seen anywhere else. It does not have a deli or a
freezer section, and its location makes it difficult to get to,
but the uniqueness of its selection is sometimes worthwhile.
Unfortunately, Haddon House is also the most overpriced and
unreasonable of all the import shops I have found. I have balked
at buying several products there because the markup was too
exorbitant to pay, even for me.
To go there, again go to Hangangjin station. Take
a taxi downhill to Dankuk University and turn left at
the intersection. Follow Dokseodanggil for a kilometre
along its hellish hills and surface. Stop the cab when you see
three things together: a crosswalk just over a hill, a gas
station on the right, and a Pizza Hut on the left.
Haddon House is in the shopping plaza on the east side of the
street. Look for the 2 on the map below.
This little shop in a dirty old building in Seodaemun doesn't
look like much, but it does carry a fair number of imported
goods and decent canned goods. The store is also notable for
its black market section out front. (Be sure to
look at the expiry dates on the black market goods! Some are
months or years past the sell-by date.)
To get there, take the #1 or #1-1 buses from
Shinchon, going west and north. The store is in an alley
behind the Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) building.
I can hear it now: "Coffee shops? This isn't the restaurants page!"
Maybe it isn't, but some (not all) of the Migo's shops sell fresh
bread daily, whole loaves of rye, ciabatta, sourdough and others.
Their bread is much closer to a proper bread than anything else
you will find in Seoul or in Korea. Even if the Migo's you find
doesn't sell bread, get a list of their stores from that location
to find the others.
If you don't have a bias against islamic people in general, you can
find a wide variety of goods in many shops around Itaewon. The staff
are always friendly to me, and the only thing I don't like is that
they close several times per day for prayers. (Christians have
blue laws, and muslims have red/black/green laws.)
For vegetarians, these shops can be a lifesaver. Many sell a wide
variety of beans and legumes, enough for each day of a fortnight.
Guess what they sell ("Duh...pork?") You can
find imported Australian lamb here, as well as many dried and
canned imported goods.
To find it, go east from Burger King and turn south at the
corner before the fire station. Walk up the hill, turning
left at the school. Follow the road for about 200 metres, and
it's on your left, 50 metres before the mosque.
Look for the 4 on the map of Itaewon.
This used to be one of the favorite shops to buy imported goods
from, but a recent (June 2004) experience put me off. I was
looking through the dried goods (beans and such) when I
found a bag with an insect in it. I showed the insect to the
proprietor, and instead of removing the bag from the store, he
put it back on the shelf. From now on, I'm only
buying canned goods from his place. If you are willing to
trust his products, you can also buy imported Australian beef
and lamb.
To go there, enter the alley behind the Hamilton Hotel and go
west almost to the end. You will find it just before the
Pattaya Restaurant and the Three Corners pub.
Look for the 2 on the map of Itaewon.
This is a very small shop with few items, but is worth mentioning
anyway.
To find it, go south from Burger King and up the hill, turning
left at the school. About 100 metres ahead you will see a hair
salon on your right. Bisma is in the basement below. (Yes,
"sink the Bisma", ha ha ha.)
Look for the 8 on the map of Itaewon.
In the alley behind Burger King (also known at "Hooker Hill")
there are a bunch of illegal phone shops, Korean eateries, and
a single back alley turning south toward a few grotty bars. In
that alley, however, is a shop selling a small selection
of British and African goods.
Look for the 7 on the map of Itaewon.
Sometimes when you want something, you just can't find it anywhere
else except through less than scrupulous methods. If you are
willing to pay the price and check the expiry dates on the items
(it's funny to see the PX tags from the US military stores
still on some items), you can get what you need.
If you choose to shop on the BM, "beware and be aware" to quote
the warden from the TV series "Oz". When dealing with
people who are already breaking the law by selling this stuff, what
is to stop them breaking the law again by ripping you off or
robbing you?
The Philipino community in Korea is so large that there
is a catholic church with service in Tagalog. Next to
the church there is a "grey market" (semi-legal)
on Sundays that runs all day. You can find a myriad of
Philipino goods, like canned foods, spices, or even CDs
and DVDs. You can also meet some nice people who speak
fluent English.
To go there, take subway Line 4 to Hyehwa
station and go north on the east side of the street.
You can see the spire from the subway exits.
On the south side of the street, opposite from Hyundai
department store (or, where Grand Mart used to be)
there is an underground black market with about a dozen
vendors selling any number of things from alcohol to
candy (don't buy it, it was probably made before 2000)
to canned goods.
If you go south from the subway station and Burger King,
after about 300 metres you will see a shop on the left
with a red front and a glass window. It's not big, but
the woman there sells a variety of small imported goods.
Look for the 3 on the map of Itaewon.
As mentioned elsewhere, there is a black market at the
Saroega store. There are about three tables of products,
with a million and one bottles stacked up to the ceiling.
If you walk east of Dongdaemun Stadium for about a kilometre
you will find many stalls and vendors selling things like
clothes, housewares, and electronics. Among these are a few
black marketeers, probably the least scrupulous of the lot
in Seoul. Most BMers are stationary, but this bunch are
fly-by-night operators.
This is a place to be very careful with your wallet. Also
beware of the boshintang (a/k/a dog meat) shops
in the area. DO NOT take pictures of them, some will physically
confront those who do.
What to shop for
This is a parial list of foods available for sale in Korea. Most of them
are items that you won't find for sale back in Canada. A few of them are
everyday items but knowing they are available can make life overseas more bearable.
There are at least a dozen different types of pre-cooked containers
of rice for sale in Korea. There is plain white, brown rices, with
grains, and several other types sold in either 210g or
300g sizes. For those who can't cook or those who don't
have time, these can make meals a heck of a lot easier. They are
pricey (C$1.50-2.00) but you are paying for convenience.
Many people will think because of Korea's large population and small
size that farmland is scarce. It is, and milk is a bit more expensive
than in Canada, but it can be found in almost every store.
Common brands you will see are Maeil, Seoul Milk,
DHA, Einstein, and Good and Cheap Milk. My
personal choice is Denmark Milk's "low fat" milk (in
reality, it is a 1-2% milk). Because of the small fridges common
to Korean, most milk is sold in 1 litre cartons or 1.8 litre bottles.
Nobody sells 4 litre bottles.
Several brands of yogurt are for sale, but the most "normal"
or western in taste are the Yoplait and Denmark brands.
Denmark is the only company that sells plain yogurt.
There is also a yogurt-drink sold everywhere, even on the street by
some ajummas in strange uniforms with big yellow hats.
If the story is true, this brand was invented in the 1950s to give
to children in schools because of the malnutrition in the country.
(There are similar yogurt drinks for sale in Thailand.) It's
quite drinkable and it is nutritious.
Koreans will go to a "cafe" and pay 3000 won (C$4.00)
for instant coffee and they will enjoy it. I won't say
the things Quentin Tarantino's character did in Pulp Fiction,
but Koreans really don't know coffee.
For those who do, finding affordable grinds and beans can be difficult.
Some brands are better than others, and some are wayyyyy
overpriced. If you buy coffee at Hyundai Department Store, you
are strictly buying for cachet, not for quality. (I saw
their prices and said, "25,000 won (C$29) for a pound of coffee? Are you
f****** crazy?!")
The places where you can get real coffee at affordable prices are these:
There are several brands of crackers for sale, but if you prefer the
North American style "saltine", look for the Ivy brand, it is
the only one like the Premium Plus you know back home. Most
others are crumbly and fatty crackers not usable in soups.
Ritz crackers are hard to find, but the Korean Zec brand look
and taste the same. Also, Lotte's vegetable crackers
(little guys, about an inch across) make good soup floaters.
For people like me who love the Jacob's brand crackers, forget it.
As mentioned elsewhere, western-style bread is a rarity in Korea.
Most bread sold here in bakeries or supermarkets is empty of taste
and is either light and dry or has the consistency of sawdust.
There are exceptions, such as croissants sold in the Patisserie
bakery chain. If you want real bread, there are only a few places to
go as mentioned above:
You can also find tortillas and pita breads at Hannam supermarket and Costco.
After millions of years of evolution, the fruits and vegetables
native to Korea are inevitably going to be different from those
found in Canada. There is a wide array available in every store
and many back street markets. If you are adventurous and willing
to try, you can have a field day (year?) trying new things.
Many stores carry western style vegetables, and even have some
canned selections. Potatoes, carrots, cabbage, lettuce, tomatoes,
mushrooms, onions and many others are readily available. Apples,
oranges, grapefruit, pineapple (no kidding, the Philippines are
a stone's throw away), grapes, lemons, and many more are for sale.
What is missing, or at least different, is that for anything common
to both Canada and Asia, you will only find the Asian version here.
For example, there are only Korean radishes (the same as Japanese
daikon, if you know it) and Koreans have never seen a
seedless grape. Most kids I talk to don't believe they exist.
Aside from Coca-cola, most soft drinks sold in Korea have very little
carbonation unless they are imported. (At Costco I found
Guara�a from Brazil. That one is really different.)
Many brands for sale here are the same as back home, but others are
substituted for with Korean brand names.
Various Fanta flavours are common, but you will almost never
see Sprite or 7-Up. The Korean Chilsung Cider
tastes and looks the same. The most unusual brand of soft drink is
called Milkis ("milk-eez"), a light white coloured
soda with a powdery taste. Other bottled drinks include "milk teas"
and "milk coffees" which are brewed drinks that are canned and
served cold.
One big (or should I say small) difference in soft drinks here
are the little 250ml cans, about 3cm in diameter and 13cm long. It
seems like a waste of packaging, but if you buy cases at Costco (10,900
won for 30 cans of Coke, or 350 won per can) it's cheaper and you
drink less at one time.
Beer is sold everywhere in Korea, the most common brands being
Hite, Cass, and OB Lager. If you aren't picky
about your alcohol and will swill anything for the buzz, they you
will be quite happy to pay around C$1.50 per bottle or can
of this crap.
For those with more particular tastes, Japanese beers Asahi,
Sapporo, and Kirin are as good as Canadian brands and
can be found in many stores (you find them in almost all LG 25
convenience stores).
San Miguel beer from the Philippines is also very good and
fresh because of the short distance. Singaporean Tiger Beer
is also worth a try, but avoid China's Tsingtao.
Very few import stores sell Canadian beers (Costco does).
At Carrefour you will find a huge selection of fresh European
beers.
An important note: Budweiser in Korea is NOT an American beer!
It is licensed and made by Korean breweries, and tastes the same as
the cheap Korean beers.
Canned tuna packed in oil can be found in every market and
convenience store in Korea. If you aren't particular about it, you
can buy tuna in regular oil, with spices and oils, with pieces of
vegetables in oil, with soy oil, with grapeseed oil, etc. etc. etc.
ad nauseum.
If like most westerners you want tuna packed in water, you have
four options:
As mentioned, the high cost of land makes raising cattle in Korea
very expensive, thus meat is too. Beef can be ludicrously overpriced
(as much as C$30 per kilogram) but may sometimes be
cheaper at Costco. Recently (May 2004), Costco cut down on their
selection because of the mad cow scare in the US and now sell only
Australian or domestic beef. The only really affordable place to eat
beef in Korea is at Burger King and McDonald's.
Chicken and pork are very common and are quite affordable. You
can also find fresh seafood everywhere, and when I say fresh, I
mean pulled out of the ocean that morning. Fish, eels, crab, and
squid are just some of the things you will see wriggling in
containers of water and sold by street vendors. (Of course, that
means killing it yourself....)
If you like lamb and you don't hate islamic people, go to
Itaewon. All the halal shops sell frozen lamb and some even sell
beef imported from Australia. (Very few Koreans eat lamb. It
horrifies them the way Koreans eating dogs horrifies us.)
If you want to be polite about it, you can say that Koreans aren't
finicky about their cheese. If you don't want to be polite, you
can say Koreans think there are two kinds, "mild" and "processed".
If you want real cheese, the strong stuff makes you hold your nose,
you can find it if you know where to look. Check the dairy sections
in these places:
Koreans eat kimchi (pickled spiced cabbage) with almost
every meal but not with pizza or spaghetti. In those restaurants,
Koreans have replaced kimchi with sweet pickles. Most Koreans
I meet think Italians eat sweet pickles with their pizza. When I say
sweet pickles, I mean the kind you find on your Big Mac and
Whoppers. I find them abominable.
For those who like a real pickle, a big sour, floppy,
reeking of vinegar gherkin, there are places to buy them. (I have
given Koreans dill pickles and they cannot believe that westerners
eat them. Koreans will eat live sea cucumbers, but westerners
eating a pickled vegetable cucumber is disgusting?) Satisfy your
cravings here:
I said condiments. Don't get your hopes up (or anything else for that
matter).
Whatever you want, be it ketchup, mustard, relish, salt, pepper, mayonnaise,
A1 steak sauce, or Worcestire sauce, you will find it in most markets or
failing that at Carrefour. Yes, you can (yechh!) have ketchup
on your scrambled eggs....
There is one condiment that is difficult to find: vinegar. If you
are like me and love it on your french fries, you will have to search for
it. Try Hannam supermarket and Haddon House. If you are
desperate, buy a 4 litre bottle at Costco.
Many stores carry bottles of dried seasonings just like western
supermarkets do, but they are often harder to find. What you will
not find anywhere except on the black market, and often not even there,
are chili powder and vegetable boullion cubes. (Yet you can find
meat boullion cubes everywhere....) Bring them yourself if you
want them.
If you like and know how to use spices, pack a few brand new bottles of
your favourites in your suitcase. Don't worry about the customs officials,
if the spices are unopened and solely for your personal use, the government
will let you import them without any problem because spices contain no
"active" ingredients.
Don't bring stuff like baking powder and cornstarch, you can get
that anywhere.
In closing
I obviously can't know where everything is and have not been
everywhere in Korea. I will add others stores and goodies to
the page if or when I find them. If you know of another place
to go, fill me in and I'll add it. Go to my
Click here for the map
if you block pop-up windows
Click here for the map if you block pop-up windows
Click here for the map if you block pop-up windows
Click here for the map if you block pop-up windows
Their house brand French coffees are as good as any in Canada.
You can buy huge (2kg) cans of their in-store brand,
Kirkland. It's not very good, but if you're not fussy
and want to save a few won.... You can also buy coffee filters
in quantity, about 300 for the price of 100 in most other places.
Most of the brands sold there are overpriced (1 � to twice
Carrefour's price).
Their prices are even worse than Hannam. But, if Carrefour is
out of stock (and they sometimes are) you may not have a
choice.
Foodback
Feedback page and drop me a line.
Back to the previous page
Back to the front page
