Lifestyle - The Korea Times

Korean-American artisan's enthusiasm for gourmet cheese never wears thin

Korean-American cheesemaker Soyoung Scanlan. Korea Times file.By Kang Aa-youngKorean-American cheesemaker Soyoung Scanlan, better known in Korea by her maiden name Kim So-young, is one of the top-notch cheese artisans in the United States. Produced fresh at her Andante Dairy in Petaluma, California, her organic hand-made cheeses go directly to America's top restaurants and high-end retailers who are seeking to meet sophisticated consumers' delicate taste buds. The San Francisco-based local newspaper SF Gate named Scanlan's Figaro as one of the top 10 cheeses for 2008.Her dairy business took off after celebrity chef Thomas Keller publicly endorsed her hand-made cheese as one of the best in a TV interview. Unlike farmstead cheeses, Scanlan's hand-made cheeses have their own flavor and taste.Her cheese is named after musical terms, such as Adagio, Rondo and Nocturne. “Making music and making cheese (or anything good) are very similar,” Scanlan said during a recent Korea Times interview in Seoul. “They require a lot of practice, and even small mistakes can screw things

Nov 1, 2018

Korean-American artisan's enthusiasm for gourmet cheese never wears thin

Ginseng makes inroads into mainstream food market

Rural Development Administration (RDA) Department of Herbal Crop Research Director Choi In-myung speaks during a press conference in Jung-gu, Seoul, Thursday. / Courtesy of RDABy Nam Hyun-wooKorean ginseng is garnering fresh attention as a convenient food item, overcoming its conventional image as an ingredient for traditional medicines.The Rural Development Administration (RDA) said Thursday it has been developing home meal replacements (HMR) using ginseng, as well as releasing a number of ginseng snacks to meet the current market preference for casual meals. “Despite its health advantages and dietary benefits, there have been limits in using ginseng as a food,” RDA Department of Herbal Crop Research Director Choi In-myung said. “The development of ginseng HMR products is a pre-emptive measure to respond to changing consumer trends. It will not only boost domestic ginseng consumption but also contribute to exports.”The RDA's move is in line with its recognition of faltering ginseng consumption. Domestic ginseng consumption stood at 23,744 tons in 2009 but dro

Nov 1, 2018By Nam Hyun-woo

Ginseng makes inroads into mainstream food market

Pink muhly gardens emerging as hot tourist destination

Tourists move through a colony of a Pink Muhly Grass garden in Jangseong County, South Jeolla Province, Oct. 25. / Courtesy of Jangseong County OfficeBy Kang Seung-wooSurreal fields of pink grass are drawing attention, becoming a new tourist attraction in Korea.The weird yet exquisite U.S. native pink muhly grass is emerging as the most-sought-after autumn plant, especially because the ornamental grasses offers stunning visual effects for social media photos.In the wake of the plant's ever-growing popularity, more local governments and district offices are keen to paint the nation's once yellow and red autumn landscape with pink waves. A restaurant and a church on Jeju Island are said to have first planted the grass in 2014, but it publicly made its name after being planted at a Jeju eco-park in a bid to attract more tourists, receiving rave reviews. Since then, pink muhly gardens have been established thick and fast across the nation. Currently, there are 32 pink muhly spots. The pink grass is known botanically as Muhlenbergia capillaris and grows up to 90 centimeters tall. The drou

Nov 1, 2018By Kang Seung-woo

Pink muhly gardens emerging as hot tourist destination

Hotel Lobby

By Kang Seung-wooGrand Hyatt Incheon to bring authentic Chinese cuisine The Grand Hyatt Incheon's Restaurant 8 will launch a food promotion featuring authentic Chinese cuisine. For the event, scheduled for Nov. 7 to 18, the property will bring Douglas Yu, chef of Hyatt Regency Qingdao, and he plans to serve the Shandong region's cuisine including traditional Qingdao seafood specialties and the classic Peking Duck.Guests can enjoy these authentic Chinese foods as a la carte items, in lunch and dinner course menus and at the weekend buffet. These dishes will also be available for takeout. Yu has more than 30 years of cooking experience and previously served as a chef at Made in China at the Grand Hyatt Beijing. Ananti Namhae unveils culinary winter packageThe Ananti Namhae has come up with an all-inclusive promotion ensuring a great culinary experience and utter relaxation. Under the Tasty Winter package, guests can have a one-night stay in a suite or a grand villa as well as a breakfast buffet and four-course dinner at recently renovated da Moim, an all-day dining restaurant. The pack

Nov 1, 2018By Kang Seung-woo

KTO to host travel fair in UAE

Officials from the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) speak at the Korea Medical & Wellness Travel Mart in Dubai, in this 2017 photo. This year, the KTO will host the Korea Culture & Tourism Festival in Abu Dhabi. / Courtesy of Korea Tourism OrganizationBy Jung Hae-myoung The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) will hold the Korea Culture & Tourism Festival in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), from Nov. 1 to 3, to attract more Middle Eastern visitors, the tourism body said Tuesday.The festival's theme is “Korea Happiness Festival” ― reflecting Middle Eastern culture which values family ― to target family tourists.Top Korean medical institutions and agencies, including the Asan Medical Center and the Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine, will take part to promote medical tourism to Korea. More than 40 companies and travel agencies, such as The Face Shop and Etude House, will join in to attract female consumers. In 2017, about 3,400 medical tourists from the UAE visited Korea. Their average expenditure per person was 10.7 million won ($9,33

Oct 30, 2018

Think tank recommends looking at Japan in promoting tourism industry

An economic think on Friday released recommendations on what the government can do to improve the country's tourism industry, citing Japan as an example to follow.The recommendations by the Korea Economic Research Institute (KERI), relayed to the tourism ministry, enumerate 10 tasks in five sectors -- the visa system, transportation, accommodation, a control tower for tourism and tourism content -- to facilitate improvements.More specifically, the government should simplify visa procedures by issuing e-visas for visitors from Southeast Asia, whose numbers have grown substantially, KERI said. For Chinese tourists, the government should allow multiple visas for people from more regions, it said.Chinese tourists arriving on cruise ships can stay here only up to three days for group travel, compared to a week in Japan, KERI pointed out. It recommended matching Japan's weeklong stay and giving people a choice between individual and group tours. There should also be better transportation infrastructure -- for example, offering a unified ticket that tourists can use for buses, subways, trai

Oct 26, 2018

Think tank recommends looking at Japan in promoting tourism industry

Boracay reopens - with new environmental protection rules

Fishermen ride a powerboat at sunset on the Philippine island of Boracay on Oct. 25. AFPBy Jung Min-hoThe Philippines has reopened its beautiful island of Boracay after a six-month restoration ― but with strict new rules to protect the environment.The sandy idyll was closed to visitors in April following President Rodrigo Duterte's orders to clean what he called a “cesspool.”Despite the long-awaited reopening, beach parties on Boracay will not be the same. New rules now ban drinking and smoking on the beach and limit the number of tourists and hotels.Only 19,000 tourists will be allowed each day, while only half of its 12,000 hotel rooms can be booked.Masseuses, vendors and bonfires are no longer allowed on the beach.All water sports, except swimming, have been banned and three casinos on the island have been shut down.Years of mass tourism ― 2 million tourists every year ― had polluted Boracay with mountains of garbage and human waste. And the restoration project is not yet finished.The government will continue to clean up the island and oversee renovation

Oct 26, 2018By Jung Min-ho

Boracay reopens - with new environmental protection rules

Culinary journeys to Finland

Unique cuisine with natural flavors appeals to KoreansBy Kang Seung-wooAn appealing holiday destination thanks to its natural attractions, Finland is now seeking to take Korean travelers on a gastronomic journey with its unique Finnish cuisine that aims to bring nature to the dining table. Sari Hey, public relations manager at Visit Finland, speaks during a press conference in Seoul, Tuesday. / Courtesy of Visit FinlandVisit Finland, an organization promoting tourism for the North European country, held a press conference in Seoul, Tuesday, to introduce Finnish cuisine the essence of which lies in pure, simple and local ingredients prepared to accentuate natural flavors.“Being avid travelers, Koreans are increasingly exposed to diverse cultures worldwide and now seem to seek something new and more wholesome. Finland will prove to be the perfect destination for these experienced travelers,” said Sari Hey, public relations manager at Visit Finland.Jani Toivanen, the program coordinator, said Finland is a haven of clean and naturally nutrient-rich foods.“The long summe

Oct 25, 2018By Kang Seung-woo

Seoul's 'emotional marketing' targeting Chinese tourists

By Kang Seung-wooThe Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) has stepped up efforts to bring back Chinese tourists with the launch of a creative project focused on emotional marketing.The project, titled “Seoul with Chinese creators,” is part of the city government's cultural marketing program that invites the most trendy and influential Chinese creators to propose a trip to Seoul. Through the project, Seoul seeks to produce and release content that can appeal to Chinese people.The invited creators are a singer-songwriter, a chef, an emoji artist, a screenwriter, a digital comic writer, a photographer, a one-person media creator and a travel specialist.The creators will be joined by the Zhengzhou TV broadcasting team from Henan Province in China that will shoot their journey to introduce the charms of a trip to Seoul to the Chinese people. Chinese creators have plans to produce and release their content while they are still visiting. For example, the digital comic writer, the travel specialist and one-person media creator plan to record and open to the public every day of th

Oct 25, 2018By Kang Seung-woo

Seoul's 'emotional marketing' targeting Chinese tourists

Daeryong Market where time has stopped

Daeryong Market, in the center of Gyodong Island, Incheon, has been created by displaced North Koreans who settled on the island. The small vintage stores that are over half a century old bring visitors back in time to 1960s and 70s Korea.  / Korea Times photos by Choi Won-sukBy Park Jin-haiGYODONG ISLAND, Incheon ― Daeryong Market, the one and only major market located in the center of Gyodong Island, is a place where time has stopped. Like a broken old chiming wall clock, time has stopped at somewhere between the 1960s and 1970s. Walking through the marketplace, those small old slate-roofed shops selling popular snacks and various necessities of the time, vintage tea houses, a rundown drugstore, a barber shop and a clock repair shop bearing all the traces of time, give visitors the surreal feeling of being channeled into the past. “It's been quite a long time since I've seen as many people as these days. I have mixed feelings about the tourists coming here, both good and bad,” a pharmacist's old wife said in a small voice and a graceful smile over the counter at Gy

Oct 25, 2018By Park Jin-hai

Home is right there but out of reach

Travel & Food

Travel & Food

Korean-American artisan's enthusiasm for gourmet cheese never wears thin

Ginseng makes inroads into mainstream food market

Pink muhly gardens emerging as hot tourist destination

Hotel Lobby

KTO to host travel fair in UAE

Think tank recommends looking at Japan in promoting tourism industry

Boracay reopens - with new environmental protection rules

Culinary journeys to Finland

Seoul's 'emotional marketing' targeting Chinese tourists

Daeryong Market where time has stopped

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