Enjoying Fusion Food & Art in Seoul
‘WE HAVE BEEN TO SEOUL: WE LIKE IT THERE!’ WRITES FERRY DE BAKKER AFTER HIS RECENT VISIT TO KOREA WHERE HE SEARCHED OUT FUSION FOOD AND FASCINATING MUSEUMS.
My wife and I have just spent a week in Seoul.we love it there. We like the people. They exhibit a free spirit, they are politically active, they are well-educated. We found them to be very friendly. True, most Koreans don’t speak any English, but a good number speak Mandarin. So, that helps if you speak Mandarin yourself.
KOREAN FOOD FUSION
We liked the food. Sure, there is a lot that can be said and enjoyed about Korean food. Of course, there are the eternal favourites, such as Korean fried chicken and beer; and Korean BBQ, delicious and very reasonably priced, but that was not our priority. Instead, we selected restaurants owned by young chefs, who create fusion Korean-french, or Korean-spanish cuisine. We also liked the many museums, as well as the variety of exhibitions and collections they offer. Rest assured, there is a lot more.
Let’s start with food. One helpful website is Will Fly For Food. Another is the Michelin Guide, and this is what we focused on. We first looked for innovative cuisine. Right, 11 restaurants.
Next, we checked out Korean contemporary, OK, another six restaurants were added to our list. Finally, we selected areas not too far from our hotel. However, the most difficult part was yet to come; getting a table. This is not easy. The main reason is that most of these restaurants are small and have no more than 25-40 seats. We tried Mingles, Alla Prima, Jungsik, Joo Ok, Exquisine, Moki and Zero Complex, only to be disappointed. But we did manage to get a table at Mosu and one at Dosa. They have one Michelin star each and in both cases, we felt two stars would have been deserved.
AKIRA BACK AND HIS RESTAURANT DOSA
Let’s focus on Dosa, since it won first prize in our Week-long
Seoul Restaurant Challenge, but also since it is such an interesting story. It was first opened in 2016 by Korean-american chef Akira Back, who was and is best known for his chain of 18 restaurants, mainly Japanese, in nine countries around the world.
It wasn’t easy at first for his new venture and it took more than just a couple of months before diners started to arrive, only to discover Akira Back’s hometown debut was not at all what they had expected: a relatively small, and simple restaurant with 34 seats. No sushi and other Japanese dishes, but innovative cuisine with a distinct Korean twist. Today it is one of Seoul’s most popular restaurants. It serves six- and eight-course set lunches at roughly USD 46 and 63; as well as nine- and 11-course dinners at USD88 - 106. Excellent wine-pairing is offered at reasonable prices, for South-korea that is. Akira Back offers a culinary feast one will remember for quite some time. Bravo!
LEEUM, THE SAMSUNG MUSEUM OF ART
What a spectacular, colourful and entertaining place to visit! Leeum, the Samsung Museum of Art, is set in an affluent neighbourhood, with lots of fashionable restaurants, coffeeshops, as well as boutiques nearby. This attraction offers visitors all that can be expected from a museum, and then some. It is comprised of three buildings, each created by a different and worldrenowned architect: the Museum 1, which houses traditional art by Mario Botta; the Museum 2, with its exhibits of modern art, by Jean Nouvel; and the Samsung Child Education & Culture Center, developed by Rem Koolhaas. They have created three completely different structures in harmony with each other.
The museums’ own collections include works by pioneers in modern Western art, as well as contemporary giants, such as Hirst, Koons and
Richter. Equally important, there is a significant collection of artworks by Asian, as well as African and Latin-american artists. Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art is rightly proud of its Korean artwork, dating back to prehistorical times, all the way through the Joseon Dynasty, which ended in 1910. I can’t imagine anyone being disappointed after having visited this splendid museum.
A MUSEUM THAT IS ALL OVER THE PLACE
The centerpiece of museums in Seoul is
MMCA, the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art. Unlike any other museum it has developed from a single entity in Gwacheon back in 1986; to a second one in Deoksugung; a third, and the most important, in Seoul itself in 2013; and Cheongju last year. So, we have one museum that is, in fact, in four exceptionally wellplanned, stored and designed places.
The one in the centre of Seoul, is known as MMCA Seoul and it is an architectural masterpiece. Among all the good features is one that stands out. It is for people who like museum shops. That does not include me. I don’t like museum shops, I l-o-v-e them. This museum has not one, but five museum shops. Each of them kind of specialises a bit, but they are all first-rate.
The MMCA Gwacheon is a majestic structure, set in nature and surrounded by the foothills of the Cheonggyesan Mountain. The best way to get there is by using the Free Art Shuttle Bus.
You can easily spend a day there without getting bored. It is, simply, a wonderful place. Equally worth visiting are MMCA Cheongju, heralded as a museum in a storage; and MMCA Deoksugung, which is located in the West Building of Seokjojeon Hall at the Deoksugung Palace.
MORE BREATHTAKING MODERN ARCHITECTURE
There is more amazing architecture in Seoul. In fact, the city has an abundance of it. Among my top-three favourites is the EHWA Womans University. This is a creation of French architect Dominique Perrault, who became known around the world for his design of the French National Library. As you walk down and then back up in the open space between two large structures, it takes different shapes and allows for unexpected views.
EHWA Womans University is the largest female educational institute in the world and probably the most prestigious university in Korea. Founded in 1886 by Mary Scranton, an American missionary, it has a student population of over 20,000. You can find the university’s museum on the campus grounds. It opened in 1935, as part of an effort to preserve Korean cultural heritage and is now a full-fledged cultural institution. It is a delight to visit.
LIFE ON THE ZONE
Next to Seoul’s Central
Railway Station, we find the old station, now an exhibition centre with a focus on the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Compelling videos show what life along the zone is like. Especially captivating is a series of exhibits showing proposals from architects on what to do with the zone once the two Koreas are reunited.
Zaha Hadid put her trademark on Seoul as well. The Dongdaemun Design Plaza, smack in the middle of town, can best be described as ‘something else.’ When you enter the space, it turns out to be full of surprises. Particularly important is the collection of the Museum of Contemporary History, which shows what Korea and the Koreans had to endure under Japanese rule from 1910 until 1945, as well as later on, during the Korean War. Seoul has countless art galleries, with Kukje Gallery among the very best; there are shopping malls galore; beautiful parks… in fact everything that will make you want to return to this heartwarming place.