Original post:
Not sure when this opened, since nobody from my Brian in Jeollanam-do Sangmu bureau tells me anything, but it's a new addition since the last time I was in the area. A Hoa Binh (호아빈) restaurant is now in Chipyeong-dong, behind Columbus Cinema near the E-Mart in Gwangju's Sangmu area. You'll find a map here via Naver, and one on the Hoa Binh website. It's accessible via buses 지원45 지원50, and if you're going by subway you can head out exit 3 of Uncheon Station (운천역), make that right, and walk along the park until you come to, and go behind, the movie theater.
You people laugh at my enthusiasm, because Hoa Binh is hardly anything special for you Seoul or Gyeonggi folks, but Jeollanam-do has always been deprived of foreign food. This is the first Vietnamese restaurant in town since the little one near Chonnam National University closed sometime last year, and the first chain in Jeollanam-do since the Hoa Binh in Suncheon closed in April 2007. Over the past year, though, there have been some improvements. In downtown Gwangju there's now Thali, Al-Arab, and the popular First Nepal, and there's a Thai restaurant called "Thai Food" near Songjeongni Station (walk along the renovated street across from the station, and turn down the alley at the store 화이트존).
A Kraze Burger opened last year in Sangmu as well, and it serves a pretty good burger.
The K.O. Burger, from November.
11 comments:
In terms of viet food, I've recently fallen in love with the fabled vietnamese sandwich. Not to be confused with Korean WTF sandwiches. The banh mi is a lesson in how to fuse western and local into a sandwich that works. None of this jam + corn crap.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C3%A1nh_m%C3%AC
Banh mi in Toronto runs about $2. Two will fill you up nicely if you're a hulking male.
Most of the Viet food I've eaten in Korea doesn't taste anything like the real deal. I know this is true of most things, but it's usually way off. Except maybe the Pho.
When I was in Vietnam, all I ate was Vietnamese food. Well, on occassion I ate KFC, but the local food was soooo much better. The KFC spicey fish burger kicked ass though. I miss it.
lol, yeah, I knew about this place. I have already eaten there three times. I just assumed that it was not the only one or a rare treat.
I think the "Vietnamese" restaurant you are talking about has been open for a while. I recall going there some months ago. If it's not the same place, then it replaced another "Vietnamese" restaurant in the same area. The reason why I'm using quotation marks is that the food I had there was awful. We ate a few bites of all the dishes I and a friend ordered, and left. I felt bad for the people working there, but what can you expect when the food you are serving is so divorced from it's claimed ethnicity and good taste that I'd trade it all for a glass of water and a kimbap.
First Nepal notwithstanding, the majority of so called ethnic restaurants in Jeollanamdo just don't get. A name and fancy decor does not an authentic ethnic restaurant make - you need to start with the food.
What sounds promising is that in the coming months three non-Korean restaurants are due to open in Kwangju. According to a friend who lives there, a Mexican restaurant/bar called Tequila is due to open near the Chonnam University back gates. As well, the guys behind the Underground Grocer will be opening a Chinese eatery and another place serving comfort food. Only time will tell if the cuisine is quality or not.
I could talk about food and restaurants all day long I think.
When I first came here nearly five years ago, there was a wonderful Thai restaurant in Yong-bong-dong. Actual Thai guys in the kitchen, and a super friendly owner who we'd always chat with. They served awesome and authentic Thai dishes, but went the way of the dodo because Koreans rarely risked going there and foreigners were their main clientele.
There was also a decent Vietnamese restaurant downtown, I remember a bunch of the conical hats hanging in front of it outside. They served incredible spring rolls and mean bowls of pho. I'm pretty sure they went out of business as well.
Maybe with an increased number of foreign folks craving something other than ditchweed dipped in red pepper sauce, these new places opening have a higher chance of survival. One can only hope.
I think HoaBin has been open at least a couple years. I have also heard that there is another Vietnamese restaurant in Sangmu (huge place) but as yet can't get ahold of the peep who told me about it.
Downtown: Mike is opening a comfort food cafe this month. There will also be an "authentic" (in quotes cuz I'm not sure what this means as yet) Chinese restaurant by Alan Wang. Both are down the scary little alley where the Underground Grocer is.
Chondae Humun: Tequilaz (by Joe Wabe - formerly of The Abbey) has an opening party tonight. Supposed to be drinks and Mexican fare.
Also, First Nepal is opening a restaurant in Jeonju, Jeollabukdo.
Hmm, well, my fiance told me she just noticed the Vietnamese place (unless she's confusing it with another one), and I've never seen it in Sangmu either. At least I didn't notice it the few times I was there last year. Whatever, I blame the Sangmu bureau chief.
Yes, there are those two new restaurants opening later in the month, which I didn't mention here b/c they're not ready yet.
Interesting to hear about Tequillaz.
This is basically the first generation of western expats to come out of teaching and put down roots (I'm not talking about missionaries or peace corps). We haven't seen many for-us-by-us places because of the obstacles in place to owning and operating businesses, but I expect that to change significantly.
Some of the restaurants I mentioned in this blog post---Thali, Al-Arab, First Nepal, Thai Food---are all "authentic" in that they're owned by foreigners. Who knows if they'll water themselves down to appeal to more Koreans. There was a short-lived Mexicanish restaurant in the bus terminal last year. It was owned by foreigners---Central/South Americans, presumably---and first it had an authentic-looking menu. Next time I walked by, about a month later, they had lots of Korean fusion food like fried rice and noodles. Next time I walked by, about a month later, and it was the same owners but entirely that Korean crap. Next time I walked by it was a noodle restaurant, and a few months ago it became yet another restaurant serving shitty Italian food.
That is pretty bad in terms of Jeollado getting shit on if you consider Hoa Bin a break through. In Jinju, a town with less people Than Gwangju, we have 5 of those chain pho type places, and we have had a Kraze Burger for about a year. To my knowlege there isn't any kind of non Korean owned ethnic food anywhere, but I have heard rumors that there was an Indian place a few years back. There are a few Chinese, Pakistani, and Southeast Asian Markets, but no restaraunts.
My fiancee took me to the Vietnamese place she was talking about, and it wasn't Hoa Binh but Pho Bay. I've edited the post to reflect that. Turns out there's another one in Lotte Department Store closer to downtown. Just that nobody shops there or goes to the food court.
The Lotte Dept has a slew of restaurants. One of my Korean friends swears the sushi there is better than Sushi An in Bongseondong. I ate the Alaska in the basement - nasty. The top floor and basement both have several restaraunts. It's a busy place on the weekends and good for dinner and a movie.
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