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Food & Beverage Trend

By Victoria KimDue to the recent popularity of TV programs on cooking and dining, people’s interest towards food and beverages has significantly increased. This article examines food and beverage trends this year.FOOD BY COLORA monochrome food color palette is a relatively new concept that has been appearing in a variety of restaurants.Swedish cider brand Rekorderlig teamed up with Food By Color founder Ani Tzenkova to host a mid-summer dinner taking guests on a journey through a monochromatic food palette.Food photographer Isabella Vacchi presents her FoodTone series, which consists of capturing a themed dish and including its color palette and CMYK color range as if the styled dish were to be printed out.French art director Emilie Guelpa created a monochrome series for Fricote Magazine introducing the theme “one chef, one color.” Other artists and chefs have come together to create series such as the Griottes pantone arts or Sabine Scheer’s jell-o color series.Plating often distinguishes chefs and restaurants from others. A new form of artistic food presenta

Swimsuits that suit you best

By Todd SampleWhether you choose the relative privacy of a pool at a high-end hotel or to join the masses at one of the public pools which dot the Han riverside, the start of June marks the start of swimming season in Korea.To be frank, considering that the vast majority of outdoor swimming pools in Korea don't get any deeper than 1.3 meters, to deem them “swimming” pools is a bit of a stretch. However, as the tanned bodies glistening in the summer sun along the perimeter of any outdoor pool in the country will prove, heading to the pool in Korea is often more about working on the perfect summer look and being seen than cooling off in the water.Just as various as the body shapes and sizes of people at outdoor pools are the swimsuits they choose to wear. As is true with other styles, certain looks go in and out of fashion over time. Let's start this Todd's Wardrobe with a few examples of what not to wear poolside this summer.When I first started frequenting the Han River public pools years ago, it was quite common to see men strolling around poolside wearing the tiniest an

Curiosity for coffee

By Yun Suh-youngKorea has rapidly positioned itself as one of the top five coffee consuming nations in the world. We drink coffee, even several cups, everyday but we're more used to drinking coffee for an occasion ― whether it be business or social ― than actually appreciating the taste of the coffee itself. In fact, not many of us are aware of the type and quality of coffee beans used or their place of origin.Barista Roh Jin-yi who is also the owner of Jeju Coffee Farm where she cultivates her own coffee beans, shares some useful information about choosing coffee and some tips for brewing coffee in your own home.RatingA variety of ratings such as Supremo, AA, or AAA often confuse us when buying coffee beans for grinding or ordering coffee at a cafe.They are all top quality beans, the only difference being the place of origin. AA are coffee beans from Kenya, AAA from Tanzania and Supremo from Colombia. The most commonly used beans are AA.When rating coffee, 300g of beans are sampled from a 60kg sack and they're filtered through a "screen" which sorts out the beans based on

To eat is to...

Michelin-star chefs'  thoughts on eating and cookingBy Yun Suh-young"The discovery of a new dish confers more happiness on humanity than the discovery of a new star," wrote Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, a French lawyer and politician who is better known as an epicure and author of "The Physiology of Taste" (1825).In the book, the 19th century gastronome discourses elaborately on the pleasures of the table, which he considers a science, and cooking as an art."Cooking is one of the oldest arts and one that has rendered us the most important service in civic life," he says. "The pleasure of the table belongs to all ages, to all conditions, to all countries, and to all areas; it mingles with all other pleasures, and remains at last to console us for their departure."His philosophy seems to be seeing the light these days as people's interest in gastronomy has grown in line with the increasing number of TV cooking shows. As much as people started caring about "what" and "how" to eat, it seems time to step back and ruminate on the meaning of eating and cooking and what significance th

Taste of Hong Kong in Seoul

Top dim sum restaurants in SeoulBy Jeong Ji-suHar gowSiu maiSteamed BBQ pork-stuffed bunsXiao long baoA quick flight could take you over to Hong Kong to try all the Cantonese delicacies, but upon arrival to Korea, you might be disappointed at the lack of authentic Cantonese cuisines available locally. However, thanks to the proximity between Korea and Hong Kong, more Cantonese restaurants are popping up across Seoul, with the most popular Cantonese style dish – Dim Sum – starting to make a name for itself as a premium option for Chinese food. Here are some personal recommendations for the top dim sum restaurants in Seoul, along with an essential guide to dim sum, in case you were baffled in front of a bazillion dishes in front of you at a Cantonese restaurant.Essential Dim Sum Types1. Xiao Long Bao: steamed soup dumplings2. Har Gow: shrimp dumplings3. Siu Mai: pork dumplings4. Cha Siu Bao: steamed BBQ pork-stuffed buns5. Cheong Fan: rolled rice noodles6. Turnip Cake: radish cakeCrystal JadeWith over 120 branches in major cities across the Asia Pacific region, equipped wit

French dinner for a bargain

Pork confitBy Yun Suh-youngBeef steakFish with clam sauceWhen we plan to have a five-course dinner at a French restaurant, we have to brace ourselves for considerable expense. The meal price typically begins at 100,000 won and, depending on the restaurant and the reputation of the chef, it could reach up to double that amount per person. While some would unhesitatingly pay the amount, others would experience a stomach-wrenching moment when receiving the bill.For those who love to dine out but want their bills to be lower, the newly opened French bistro "3 étage" in Apgujeong-dong, southern Seoul, may be the answer.Owner chef Ahn Jae-hee who previously worked at the Jonas restaurant in Stockholm, One Market in San Francisco, and Marque in Sydney to name a few, opened his first restaurant on May 22 in the heart of the chic Gangnam district.Armed with a delectable five-course meal that delights the palate with every dish, the restaurant is likely to have smooth sailing amidst the challenge of neighboring chefs.Before the meal comes bread and butter, but the smoked butter is a uni

Healing spaces

Dorae Forest © The WEBy Yun Suh-youngOne of the many reasons people visit Jeju Island is for the great weather that can be enjoyed to the optimum coupled with the tranquil and refreshing tropical natural environment.But as Jeju is becoming more populous day by day with tourists flocking to the island, the central tourist hubs of Jungmun and Jeju may not be the best places to visit.On a recent trip to Jeju Island, W's reporter sought out accommodation in rather remote regions that may turn out to be a great healing getaway for summer vacations. Aqua Meditation PoolWE HotelThe WE Hotel in Jeju's Seogwipo, which opened last year, is a unique healthcare resort that is the first of its kind on the island.Tucked away in a hilly region 10 minutes from Jungmun, the resort is quiet, spacious and uncrowded. In front of the hotel lies a forest for strolling and meditation and inside the hotel, various programs are offered for healing the mind and body.A combination of the first letters of the words water and energy, the hotel specializes in water therapy programs which are offered wit

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