Seoul: Full of Hospitality

Seoul has never been high on my cities list. For roughly the same flying time, I could be in Tokyo. But when EO asked if I'd like to meet Korean artists Kim Joon and Nancy Lang, my interest in making a trip to Seoul was finally piqued. Even then, because of countless people's accounts, I was not that enthusiastic about the city itself, so I only stayed for a couple nights last week. Turns out, Seoul exceeded my expectations.

The first thing that struck me on arrival in Incheon, as I was looking for the SK Telecom counter, was Baskin Robbins. It kind of gave me that warm, fuzzy feeling of familiarity, even though it's been decades since I last had a Baskin Robbins ice cream (their bubble gum ice cream used to be my favourite). But the superficial sense of familiarity fades quickly in Seoul. Basically, it's the moment you hop in a taxi and try to go somewhere. It seems South Korea and Japan have a similar addressing system, where numbers are used to determine the "coordinates" of a building within an area. The problem is, nobody (aside from the people actually occupying the building) knows where the building is just by looking at the address.

I had a list of places I wanted to check out, complete with addresses and phone numbers. It took Grand Hyatt concierge nearly half an hour just to mark the rough, not exact, locations of 10 Corso Como, Boon the Shop, Spa Lei and a Korean BBQ restaurant in Sinsa-dong on a map. There seems to be a general lack of knowledge on the concierge desk. Turns out, 10 Corso Como and Boon the Shop are just a block or so away from each other in Cheongdam-dong.

Finally, armed with printed maps, I hit 10 Corso Como first. The Seoul outpost of this Milan concept store opened early this year. Those who have visited both say that the Seoul shop is better. It’s a beautifully-designed and conceived shop. Their fashion sections are a little more limited because Boon the Shop already owns the distribution for many of the major brands, but it's mix of coffee table books, fashion accessories, design furniture, exhibition space make it a great place to wander around. The cafe serves great paninis and lattes as well.


I got my first taste of Seoul hospitality when IL suggested I call her if I wanted to visit Boon the Shop. She wanted me to meet her friend IK who is the creative director for the shops, so I called IL while I was still in 10 Corso Como. I had wanted to meet IK for info on the retail scene in Seoul. She called me back to say that IK was in a meeting (I did end up meeting him the next day over coffee at 10 Corso Como when I learned that the two shops are actually distant cousins. 10 Corso Como is owned by a textile subsidiary of Samsung Corp. Shinsegae, which owns Boon the Shop among other things, used to be a part of Samsung. And because BTS owns most of the coveted labels, 10CC ends up having to buy from BTS.), but he had arranged for JH, one of the buyers to show me around. I fully expected IK to be busy, but I did not expect for him to arrange for someone else to play shop guide, especially on a drab, rainy day. JH picked me up from the 10 Corso Como's cafe. First, we walked to Boon the Shop Men, which was just around the corner, to have a quick look and pick up umbrellas. The 3-storey men's shop carries casualwear (Libertine, Comme des Garcons, DSquared, etc.) as well as suits in an cosy space.

Boon the Shop Men

Boon the Shop Women

The women's shop is much grander with its vaulted entrance lobby. I was very excited to see, hanging from the lobby ceiling, a charcoal spiral staircase installation by Bahk Seon Ghi, the artist I had most wanted to meet on this trip, but who, unfortunately, was in Europe.

The Bahk lobby installation.
You can't really see it here, but it is a spiral staircase out of individual pieces of charcoal.

Before she left me, JH had suggested I check out nearby Space Mue, another multi-brand fashion shop (Chloe, Balanciaga etc.). Of course, I had no idea where Space Mue was. So as I exited BTS, I walked into Vecchia e Nuovo (a branch of the same coffee shop in Westin Chosun, which is also owned by Shinsegae), a cute little cafe to ask for directions. The manager replied that she didn't know the shop, but that if I waited she would look it up on the internet. As I was waiting, I couldn't help but try their green tea cupcake. The cake part was very nice, but the icing was a tad too sweet. The manager gave me directions to the Gucci shop and then told me to ask the staff at Gucci for better directions; as Space Mue was nearby. As I was leaving, she even gave me a green tea cookie. Truly impressive service! But that wasn't to be an isolated incidence.

The green tea cupcake that I just had to try. Next time, I might go for the chocolate though.

I never did find Space Mue. I made it as far as Gucci, but the shop was already closed. After a bit more wandering around, it was time to look for the dinner venue. I hopped in a cab and handed the map to the driver. The driver looked at the map and said it didn't make any sense so I ended up calling the restaurant. I got dropped off and was pointed down a lane. Of course, I couldn't find the restaurant. I stopped off at a Family Mart, a bar, a shop, getting a little closer each step of the way. Finally, I ran into a guy who actually walked me to the correct lane.

IL had picked the restaurant; Sanbong Harogui (산봉 하로구이; 657-17 Sinsa-dong; +82 2 5462229) was her favourite Korean BBQ restaurant. RK, host of Talk Around on Arirang and who was instrumental in setting up the meet with Kim Joon and Nancy Lang (she's his co-host on Talk Around), explained that the restaurant was more like an izakaya where people go for drinks and then order some BBQ dishes as a snack. But we managed to make a very satisfying meal out of it while RK tried to teach me hangul (Korean alphabet). It's a great feeling when you can finally make some sense out of squiggles that previously meant nothing. The beef dishes were wonderful, but my favourite was the dumplings (mandu 만두). At one point, RK looked at my plate and exclaimed with a shocked look, "You ate both of them?!" Well, he was the one who put the two tennis-ball-sized dumplings on my plate in the first place. And they were delicious!

Real charcoal makes the meat even tastier!

After dinner, we were off to meet relatively recent newlyweds JP and MC for some Champagne in Garosu-gil, a really cool street to hangout with lots of little wine bars, cafes, boutiques etc. Of course, I had to ask them for their favourite restaurants. Here's their list (I didn't get a chance to try any of them, but definitely on my list for the next visit):
1. Tani in Cheongdam-dong, behind the Prada shop
2. Episode in Sinsa-dong on the northeast side of Dosan Park (the lanes along the eastern and southern sides of the park are lined with cute, little shops, restaurants and cafes. Hermes has a store here and, according to IK, it is a must see as their gallery space usually has interesting exhibitions).
3. Miss Park in Cheongdam-dong
4. Hashi behind Prince Hotel
5. Seasons in Cheongdam-dong

On my last morning, I decided to have breakfast at The Shilla before popping over to the Leeum Samsung Museum of Art. And what greets me as soon as I walk into the lobby? Another Bahk Seon Ghi installation! This time, it's made of out crystal. I had the perfect breakfast for a cold, rainy day -- a very refreshing drink of ginseng with milk and honey and a bowl of wonton noodles.