The Korea Times

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Baby do the Philly dog

It's hard finding a good hot dog restaurant in Seoul. And once you do find one, there's no guarantee it will stick around. The latest place I've found is Phillydog, a small roadside storefront located in the street leading up to Yongsan District Police Station. An odd location, but not too far out of the way. The exterior is decorated with posters showing the menu items, as well as some odd artificial intelligence-generated images, plus lots of big windows so you can watch the food preparation process closely. The first sign that this place knows its hot dogs is how good it smells when food is cooking on the flat-top griddle. Food preparation takes a while, at least 10 minutes, so it's a welcome distraction to be able to watch — especially when the blowtorch comes out. The menu is surprisingly diverse, with five hot dog options. But the star attraction is the restaurant's namesake, the Philly dog. It's crowned with a thick layer of shredded beef, topped with slices of yellow and white processed cheese, similar to what you'd expect from a Philly cheesesteak sandwich, except here it's s

Mar 30, 2026By Jon Dunbar

[RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK] Baby do the Philly dog

Global Community

Australian food takes center stage at G'day ROK event — but don't expect Toowoomba pasta

The Australian Chamber of Commerce in Korea (AustCham) is offering the finest food the antipodean nation has to offer at the G’day R.O.K event on Friday, March 27, at the Grand Hyatt Seoul. The chamber’s flagship event is hosting an evening of networking, food, drink, live music and giveaways, including the chance to win a flight to Australia. Prior to the event, AustCham will hold an invitation-only ceremony presenting the Australia-Korea Business Awards (AKBA), recognizing outstanding individuals and organizations contributing to the Australia-Korea business relationship across a range of sectors. "At a time of rising geopolitical tensions and increasing strain on global supply chains, the Australia-Korea economic partnership is taking on renewed strategic importance," said Rowan Petz, AustCham CEO. "The AKBA awards help shine a spotlight on how important it is for countries like ours with such complementary economies and democratic values to work together for common prosperity and economic security." Suspended since 2020, AKBA finally returns this year, now paired with G’day R.O

Mar 23, 2026By Jon Dunbar

Australian food takes center stage at G'day ROK event — but don't expect Toowoomba pasta

Global Community

3 Japanese punk bands ready to play Seoul

Japan has one of the oldest punk scenes in the world, dating back to the 1970s — certainly one of the first outside of the West, and probably the first in Asia. The Japanese punk scene has many close ties with neighboring Korea’s own scene, which is much smaller and about 20 years younger, having started in the early 1990s. “Since Japan is the closest country to us and the cultures are similar, we’ve been performing with Japanese bands quite often for a long time,” said Park Byung-sun, guitarist of the Korean band Pogo Attack. Park said he and his friends in the Korean scene have been collaborating with punk bands in Japan every year going back to about 2003. Now in his 40s, he mentioned that he lived in Tokyo for two years before turning 30, during which time he played in the Japanese band 00 Squad. This month, Korea is seeing an unusually high number of Japanese bands visiting, with three acts coming here for two separate tours over the next couple weeks. Yasumasa Okise remembers his first visit to Korea, during the 1988 Summer Olympics. “I was still a boy, but I remember th

Mar 16, 2026By Jon Dunbar

3 Japanese punk bands ready to play Seoul

Global Community

All-Korean band to perform Irish music for St. Patrick's Day Festival

One of the music acts set to perform at the St. Patrick's Day Festival this Saturday is the somewhat mysteriously named Gan Ainm. Gaelic for "without name," the band features four talented Korean musicians. This includes banjo player Darren Choi, fiddler Koh Hae-young, concertinist Koh Seulki and vocalist and guitarist Zee. This will be Gan Ainm's first appearance at the annual festival, organized by the Irish Association of Korea. When Choi, a Korean national whose real name is Jong-wook, joined the band in 2013, it wasn't all Koreans. He entered the picture when he attended a traditional music session and met Patricia Jones, the band's button accordion player. After the departure of some of the original members, it was down to him, Jones and Hae-young on fiddle. They went busking almost every weekend, and occasionally played other shows, including for charities. It was around this time when the band settled on Gan Ainm as the name, as they didn't want to spend too much more time thinking it over. "After much deliberation, Patricia, feeling a bit lazy about the whole process, simply sugg

Mar 11, 2026By Jon Dunbar

All-Korean band to perform Irish music for St. Patrick's Day Festival

Global Community

Japan's Melt-Banana returns to Korea after 17 years

The legendary Japanese noise rock band Melt-Banana is finally coming back to Korea for the third time, 17 years after their last show. The band had its first show here in January 2005, and returned for a second show in August 2009. "This time will be our third visit," said Yako, the duo's lead vocalist. "I clearly remember how cold it was the first time we went, and I remember that everything we ate tasted incredibly good." "The second time, we also visited a recording studio in Korea, and we had a bit more time to relax," said Agata, the other half of the duo. "We went to a building that had a lot of musical instrument shops, and I ended up making a bit of an impulse purchase. Both stays were really enjoyable." Finally, after years of scheduling conflicts and the pandemic, Melt-Banana is ready to return to Seoul. Melt-Banana was founded in 1993, and the name was chosen shortly before their first show in May that year. "There isn’t really a deep meaning behind it," Yako said. "Maybe at the time I just liked the combination of the word 'melt,' with its particular sound, and 'banana,' with

Mar 10, 2026By Jon Dunbar

Japan's Melt-Banana returns to Korea after 17 years

Global Community

Seoul goes green for St. Patrick's Day Festival

It's that time of year again — the ice melts, the sun sets later and the greens come out. It's time once again for St. Patrick's Day, including the big annual festival at D-Cube City Plaza in southwestern Seoul this Saturday. Under this year’s theme of “Seoul’s Going Green,” the plaza will be transformed into a lively showcase of Irish heritage and contemporary culture, highlighting the deep and growing tie between Ireland and Korea. “St. Patrick’s Day has been a staple in Seoul for many years now, and what makes it special is the feeling of Irish hospitality and community on display for all to see," said Alan Leavy, chairman of the Irish Association of Korea (IAK), the main organizer. "It’s not just for Irish people. We really want it to be open to anyone who wants to come along, take part and enjoy themselves. St. Patrick’s Day is among the most widely celebrated national days in the world, and here in Seoul it’s a great day out for the whole family and a chance to experience a bit of Irish culture.” Running from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m., the free, family-friendly outdoo

Mar 9, 2026By Jon Dunbar

Seoul goes green for St. Patrick's Day Festival

Global Community

New music and skate shop Spin and Grind opens in Seoul's Sinchon

Spin and Grind, a new music and skate shop, pulled off the loudest, hardest soft open in the history of soft opens in western Seoul's Sinchon area on Feb. 15. Following a vinyl record fair organized by Record Threat, four bands played the heaviest music that could be heard anywhere in Korea that night. Tables and racks were moved aside and drums were brought in, transforming the tiny second-floor store temporarily into a hardcore punk venue. Desecrate, a hardcore band from Montreal, headlined the show for the final stop on their Asia tour, joined by local acts Palecistus, Second Damage and Cutt Deep. "The space is very small for a band performance, but I thought it would be possible," said Victor Ha, the shop owner. "One of my favorite shelves was damaged, but as the first hardcore show in the new space, I couldn’t have asked for more — it was completely satisfying." Only 20 tickets were available, and those who didn't get one either had to go home or stand out front. Counting musicians, up to about 40 people crammed into the small space. Between the racks of LPs, skateboard decks a

Feb 25, 2026By Jon Dunbar

New music and skate shop Spin and Grind opens in Seoul's Sinchon

Global Community

Playwright explores 'gay voice' with script reading

Seoul Players invites drama lovers to a rehearsed reading this weekend of "Acute Accent," a new play by written Rory Kelly, a British resident of Seoul. "Acute Accent" tells the story of Hig and Rob, a gay couple living in the U.K. Hig is English, working as a professor of linguistics, while Rob is an unemployed American actor. The day after they get engaged, their mothers both show up uninvited and a huge secret is revealed. Meanwhile, in flashbacks, we see a young Hig being sent to speech therapy because of his lisp. "Exploring themes of family, trauma and our relationships with our own voices, 'Acute Accent' is a modern drama with a lot of humor and pathos," Kelly told The Korea Times. "I was inspired to write the play because of the phenomenon of ‘gay voice’ and how many homosexual men hate the way they speak, even if they are proud of their identity. I was once told by a vocal coach that I had done irreparable damage to my vocal chords in pitching down my voice, trying to sound more typically masculine. On top of this, I wanted to explore family estrangement and how it can be o

Feb 23, 2026By Jon Dunbar

Playwright explores 'gay voice' with script reading

Global Community

American folk musician Seth Mountain goes 'Over the Mountains' in latest EP

Seth Martin, better known in Seoul's music scene as folk singer Seth Mountain, has released a five-song mini-album titled "Over the Mountains." This is the latest installment in his push to complete what he calls the "Mountain Trilogy." This follows "This Mountain" (2016), which focused mostly on U.S. politics and social struggles, and "Through Dark Valleys" (2021), which turned inward and tuned into Korea. There are some new additions to some of the songs, but these five newly released recordings trace their origins way back to 2016, when Mountain was working on the first album in Portland, Oregon. After 10 years, he plans to complete the "Mountain Trilogy" with one more full-length album, on which he plans to include these five songs. He pictures that one being "less topical and more personal, philosophical, spiritual... but still acting as a sort of summit for the trio and making it all one mountain, so to speak." He added, "As for this EP, I want it to stand on its own as a project. But the songs used here will also feature on the third full-length mountain album, but mixed different

Feb 17, 2026By Jon Dunbar

American folk musician Seth Mountain goes 'Over the Mountains' in latest EP

Global Community

Montreal hardcore band Desecrate tours Seoul, Busan

Montreal hardcore band Desecrate is coming to Korea on tour for the first time, but for Thomas, the band's guitarist, this is far from his first trip here. Over the past 10 years, he has visited Korea seven times. He explained that the name Desecrate was chosen "to call to mind the downfall of our society, how we make leaps in technological advancements but at the same time regress on a human aspect." He added that the band's name means that "we're 'desecrating' human nature." The band has released several recordings since its first demo in 2021. In 2024, Desecrate released "Power Play," featuring Scott Vogel of the legendary U.S. hardcore band Terror, also friends of Korea's small scene. The band released its first full-length album, "Without Fear of Consequence," last year, and just last month put out the four-song EP "Old Ghosts." The songs are mercilessly hard, with a strong metal influence, and the lyrics are especially brutal, with lines like "There is no life without pain" in "Human Nature" and "Day after day, they corrupt and control, poisoning hearts, devouring souls, polluting

Feb 9, 2026By Jon Dunbar

Jon Dunbar

Read more

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Baby do the Philly dog

Australian food takes center stage at G'day ROK event — but don't expect Toowoomba pasta

3 Japanese punk bands ready to play Seoul

All-Korean band to perform Irish music for St. Patrick's Day Festival

Japan's Melt-Banana returns to Korea after 17 years

Seoul goes green for St. Patrick's Day Festival

New music and skate shop Spin and Grind opens in Seoul's Sinchon

Playwright explores 'gay voice' with script reading

American folk musician Seth Mountain goes 'Over the Mountains' in latest EP

Montreal hardcore band Desecrate tours Seoul, Busan

Top 5 stories