Cafe Mug
Review by Mo Kinsinger, ETA ’15-’16 City: Mokpo Restaurant Name: Cafe Mug Foods Served: Coffee, smoothies, baked goods Restaurant Address: 1001-3 Sinheung-dong, Mokpo View Map Directions: Go to the main square in the center of Rose Street in Hadang. There is a little, man-made lake there with benches, little bridges and a gazebo. In the most north-east corner of this little square, you will see Cafe Mug on the second floor of a dark, new-looking building. There are many cute cafes on Rose Street. That is kind of what Rose Street is famous for. But Cafe Mug stands out, and has turned into a main meeting point for our Mokpo ETA crowd this year. The central location, atmosphere (comfy, old-timey decorations, magazines, and a heated outdoor sitting area), the drinks (really good lattes and yummy smoothies), the fast wifi, and the personable baristas (some of whom are pretty attractive…) have made many of us regulars at this place. If you are wandering Rose Street looking for a place to lesson plan, chat with a friend, or just escae the cold/heat, among the many possible cafes in the area I recommend Cafe Mug.
Curry Story (커리 스토리)
Review by Mo Kinsinger, ETA ’15-’16 City: Mokpo Restaurant Name: Curry Story (커리 스토리) Foods Served: Indian Restaurant Address: 18 Bipa-ro 43 beon-gil, Mokpo View Map Price: 10,000 won + Directions: Start at the most east, central entrance gate to Rose Street. Walk one block down Rose Street (south-west), and turn left. Walk one block. on the left corner of the intersection, one the second story above a Ministop, is the restaurant. [slideshow_deploy id=’4143′] Mokpo is a splendid place to live. And I have very, very few complaints. In fact, the only one I can really think of is the difficulty in finding good foreign food restaurants; we all know they are out there, lurking, hiding in the outskirts of 남악 or in the winding back alleys of 시내, and when we find one we cling to it like a cherished bottle of Dr. Pepper or the last piece of real, Chicago-style deep dish pizza. That is why me and my Mokpo buds have returned to Curry Story, probably at least five times in the last couple months. The location is great–just off of the popular Rose Street with its cute coffee shops and boutiques. Curry Story’s atmosphere is colorful, cushioned and comfortable. The place is rarely crowded, and played cheesy Indian music videos which are always entertaining fillers to lulls in conversation. But the best part is the curry–spinach, chicken, plain… it is all delicious. The curry is not very spicy, but definitely authentic–Indian, not Japanese-style. You can eat the curry with rice, but I recommend the garlic nan, which comes warm, buttery, crispy, and as big as two dinner plates. The chicken is also very good. And the mango smoothies are worth trying as well. There is free coffee and candies as you leave. The waitstaff is kind and helpful. I mean, they keep tolerating our big groups of foreigners when we show up on a regular basis. All in all, this is one of our favorite “spots” in Mokpo.
Sharky’s Bar and Grill
Review by Breanna Durham, ETA ’15-’16 City: Busan Restaurant Name: Sharky’s Bar and Grill Foods Served: Western Restaurant Address: Busan, Haeundae-gu, Jung-dong, 1123-1 2-19 View Map Directions: Take the subway to Haeundae Station. The restaurant is a left on the beach’s boardwalk. It’s near the end of the beach and is one the second floor of the Gecko building. There should be a shark sign to guide you. It also has a large sign with its name. Cost: around 15,000 won There were modern black top tables and black and red leather seats. The walls were exposed brick style. There was football playing on a flat screen. Canadian sports apparel hung from the bricks. Board games laid in the back for customers. This included cards against humanity, texas poker, connect four, chess, and a few other things. To order, you had to go upstairs and wait. But I made the mistake of waiting by the kitchen. A perky server was nice enough to take my order anyway and direct me upstairs. I ordered their steakburger. The server brought condiment bottles in a Lite Beer 6-pack paper carrier. The radio continually played pop and rock. But, it wasn’t annoyingly loud. The floor needed sweeping and some tables needed a small wipe off, but it was tidy otherwise. The staff could fluently speak English. They have the regular bar food that you’ll miss, with many different burgers being the most noticeable items. There was also Mexican dishes like quesadillas and pepper poppers. They have a grilled salmon guacamole burger [15.99] and a crispy chicken bacon burger [14.99] for those that don’t want to eat beef. The burger was good. It had real beef. The seasoning is a bit light, but is fine as long as you have toppings and condiments. I got tater tots as a side. They had actual olives on the salad, which came with the burger. It had light balsimic dressing. It took less than 30 minutes to get my food. It was a small taste of home.