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| Cheongungak is former President Park Chung-hee's residence during his years in Mungyeong, North Gyeongsang Province. |
By Kim Ji-soo
Former President Kim Young-sam was well-known for his love for "kalguksoo" or knife-cut noodles. The late Kim Dae-jung enjoyed thornback and tripe while "samgyetang" or ginseng chicken in broth was the dish most savored by the late Roh Moo-hyun.
For Park Chung-hee, it was "gukbap" or rice mixed in a beef and vegetable broth, "sujebi" or clear soup with dough flakes, washed down with "makgeolli" or rice wine.
With his daughter, President-elect Park Geun-hye, set to take office on Feb. 25, the birthplace and former residential area of the former President are playing on nostalgia to promote these dishes and the region.
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| "Gukbap" or rice mixed in beef-and vegetable-broth was Park's favorite dish. |
The local government of Mungyeong, North Gyeongsang Province, where the former President worked as a school teacher from March 1937 through March 1940, will open a restaurant on March 2 near Cheongungak, his abode at that time. The former military man-turned-president taught there after graduating from Daegu Teacher's Gymnasium, a popular high school for primary school teachers, and before going onto military college.
"Since the election of his daughter, we've had more tourists visiting Cheongungak, so we launched the project to meet this demand and to make use of local produce," said Kim Mi-ja, an official with the Mungyeong Agriculture Extension Center affiliated with the Mungyeong city government.
The humble menu will also include "rice mixed with ground beans and vegetables" and "bibimbap" with pigweed. Work is currently in progress to standardize the recipe, so that local produce purchased at reasonable prices is used, local government officials said.
Also offered at the restaurant will be Park's "makgeolli cocktail," a concoction of beer or cider and the rice wine as well as makgeolli flavored with "omija" (schisandra chinensis), a traditional Korean drink made with fruit herbs.
In Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, the birthplace of Park, the local government there has been operating a tourist center near his first home to let visitors experience the "barley hills," in reference to the hard-times of the 1960s and 1970s when food shortages were acute in Korea. There is also a menu to evoke nostalgia ranging from makgeolli, tofu, "gaetteok" or cake made with coarse barley flour and "barley gamju," a sweet drink prepared with barley and malt." The center is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
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