➹ 딸기-holic anonymous!!!

I LOVE KOREAN STRAWBERRIES!!!
There, I said it. Since I've left Seoul, I've missed the refreshing winter chill, my Kpop boy group members, the amazing shopping, my wonderful Korean friend, the superb Korean food, and the TO-DIE-FOR STRAWBERRIES!!! ㅋㅋㅋ



You might think I'm kidding ... but I literally ate strawberries everyday during my short vacation last winter. I can't get enough of the perfectly sweet and lovely fruit. It was all I can think of eating for breakfast, lunch and dinner hehehe. Thank goodness there were a lot of vendors selling these on the streets of Myeongdong. And how convenient are these - placed in a cup with nifty toothpicks for easy snacking! I bought myself a cup which was not chocolate dipped and they were just glorious... I also bought cups which were dipped in white and regular chocolate and they were also heavenly! There were other fruit options sold in cups in Myeongdong's underground shopping but I just can't bear to buy something else. Indeed, I was thoroughly addicted.

And my sweet affair with Korean strawberries didn't end when I departed from Seoul ... I grabbed this box off a grocery in Kuala Lumpur when I visited last January ...


And I didn't even think twice when I found this box in a grocery in Hong Kong last March...



They were ... OK. Definitely incomparable with the awesome sweetness of those lovely strawberries I ate in Seoul~ but they were nice enough. I was glad I gave in to my almost involuntary urge to buy them heheh ... I just miss these strawberries so so much. No wonder I am also loving mg strawberry face mask. Aigoo...

➹ classic comfort food - korean barbecue

There is just something so amazingly comforting about Korean barbecue. Grilling yummy meat on the table, crafting your own fabulous wrap and eating a mouthful of happiness tinged with ssamjang is incomparable. Everyone deserves to have that go-to barbecue place to enjoy good food and feel somehow enlightened ㅋㅋㅋ. The world will be a much better place if we all can be at the gloriously happy state of mind after a wonderful meal of samgyupsal.











YUMMY said in so many pictures. I wish you all happy days and perfect korean barbecue moments.

➹ the perfect hotteok from insadong

Are words even necessary? ㅋㅋㅋ






While strolling along the chilly streets of Insadong during winter, I came upon this irresistible hotteok stand. My heart was all for lining up and waiting for my turn for a piece of pure heartwarming delight. I took my steamy hotteok and sat by a bench near the stand to relax and fully enjoy my snack. I may have gotten another piece if not for the long line hahaha ... It was really really yummy. I miss eating hotteok already~~~

➹ craving korean street food!!!

These days I've been seriously craving for some sinfully authentic Korean street fare... and it's killing me!!! Seems like it's fairly easy to find really good Korean barbecue, bibimbap and some spicy stews if you look hard enough. But there is no place to get mouth watering street food ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ. Just take a look at my treasure finds from the streets of Myeongdong a few months back~




The packaging is just perfect for bringing dinner back to a cozy hotel room. This is the very definition of a happy meal~~ yummy Korean street food while watching 별에서 온 그대 ^^


SPICY and ETERNALLY DELICIOUS DDEOKBOKKI!!! I miss you so much~~~


The perfect meat on a stick! This hot bar is addicting...


And finally, warm comforting odeng plus soup. LOVED the soup ... but I just had to dip my odeng on the ddeokbokki sauce as well hahahah...

Where can I get these amazing food options here? My heart is seriously yearning for these...

➹ bibimbap in auckland city

It's spring time in the middle of Auckland's bustling Central Business District! And while this foreign city has never ending charms to match its delectable chocolates ㅋㅋ, it can still get lonely at times. Luckily, there are quite a (huge) number of Asians in this area. I swear if I close my eyes and just listen to folks wandering the streets, I can easily pretend that I'm in Seoul instead of somewhere down under!

Walking up and about Queen Street up to Britomart Station in the afternoon can feel like a walk through Myeongdong... without that irresistible temptation to splurge on cosmetics that is. There are Korean hair salons, noraebangs, Korean banks, Korean travel and tours, and of course, Korean food!

So today, I got myself some dolsot bibimbap from NOL BU NE restaurant at the corner of Wellesly and Lorne Streets. Saw this one from the Cheap Eats list from the Heart of the City page. To reach the restaurant on the 1F, you can go via the old elevator or the fire exit stairs. I chose the stairs. The walls were all adorned with Korean advertisements ~ alcohol mostly. And then I arrived at this cozy place~





I came in on a Saturday, just after noon but the place wasn't too crowded and I was seated quickly. I already knew what I wanted so I didn't take long to order. I've read review comments about the staff being stern and rude sometimes but that was not the impression I got. They were polite and welcoming and were working hard to attend to all the tables.

How I've missed BIBIMBAP! I suppose my eyes lit up when my food arrived. The banchan were delightful though perhaps I would have preferred the potato jeorim to be a little sweeter ^^. Anyway, the star of the meal, my dolsot bibimbap was easily a pretty sight. Ahhh, the warm rice was perfect for the chilly day.





I was just so happy to have a Korean rice meal! It was also very affordable which is always a good thing. Taste-wise, the bibimbap was probably just ok. But it was still a comforting spread for me.

I finished my meal with my favorite sikhye ^^. Yum!

➹ happy friday at caffe bene

Fridays are for extended lunch hours at a pretty cafe ^^.


Enjoying coffee at this Korean franchise is just a way of rewarding myself for a stressful work week. I got myself the yummy Iced White Mocha while my colleague got herself Hot Caffe Latte. Both were perfect.



The cozy interior of the cafe is absolutely comforting. It stays true to its Korean origin with cute knickknacks here and there. And just how adorable is the cafe's mascot Befy!? The pretty throw pillow is a wonderful accent to the rustic seats.




And even though the weather has been manic lately (switching from heavy downpours to intense sunlight... and back), I just had to get some bingsoo!!! I chose the classic red bean variant and got this sweet glass of delight. The topping is a piece of rice cake (ddeok!) which was perfectly soft and chewy (waa, I want more ddeok ...). The red beans were not extremely sweet which I liked. The ice shavings were nice and smooth which made for a refreshing spoonful. I will definitely get this again.



We didn't want to leave the cafe yet but we already spent our lunch hour over analyzing Master's Sun's latest episode ㅋㅋㅋ. Next time I'll have to try out the honey bread, waffles, gelato and the specialty drinks. I have to come with more friends so we can pick more food to share hahaha ... That will be for future Fridays to come.

➹ yummy finds at the korean grocery part 5!

Yeah, it's been a while ^^. It has been so busy these past weeks that I've missed my previously regular trips to the nearby Korean grocery. When I finally managed to drop by, I found some fairly "new" options on the beverage cooler!

I am a HUGE FAN of sikhye so I was really excited to try out this new bottle:


And YUMMMMMMMMM~~~ it was just perfect! I liked this better than the canned one. The sikhye was refreshing and lightly sweet and just amazing. I will definitely get this again next time.

And then I found some Pororo banana milk cartons and I just instantly had to buy them! I was thinking of my young nephew and niece and how they really love Pororo. I haven't had the chance to give them yet but I'm excited nevertheless.


If you know other canned/bottled sikhye drinks, do let me know! I really enjoy these Korean drinks ^^. I can't wait for new discoveries on my next grocery trips.

➹ craving for korean ice cream

There's nothing like a chiller filled with yummy korean ice cream to spell HEAVEN and TEMPTATION on a torturous summer day like today!!! ^^ Mansae!!!

➹ loving the giant pepero!

SUPERSIZED PEPERO!^^ ㅋㅋ How can something this huge be just so wonderfully cute?

I first saw these huge packages while visiting KL for business some months ago. There was a Korean-themed sale event at the middle of the mall amidst the Chinese New Year displays... and these huge Pepero boxes were such an inviting sight haha.




Luckily, I found these supersized Pepero's back home as well. I was teasing my nephew pretending that the chocolate sticks inside were supersized as well! How fun would that be if it were true?

I also chanced upon this Strawberry Pepero on my neighborhood Korean grocery one day. It was my first time seeing this flavor so I just had to get some! But after trying it, I decided that I still prefer the chocolate variety ㅋㅋ.