Sep 1

Sep 1 jungsik, seoul.

march 2023

after our amazing dinner at jua in new york city the previous year, we knew we had to do another korean tasting menu while in seoul. i was able to get a reservation at 2 michelin starred jungsik for james’s birthday and was very excited for it.

i remember really enjoying it. the surprise and inner squeal of pleasure with so many of the bites. however, the particular thing about this meal is that i can’t recall much about the specific dishes and which ones really stood out (and if i’m being completely honest, some dishes i don’t really remember at all).

this doesn’t speak to the meal or the experience at all! i have a notoriously bad memory, but a lot usually comes back to me when i’m looking at the photos. i even remember the servers being really great - not just to us, but that they handled some less-than-ideal diners around us with grace. i was genuinely impressed.

i’ve really been struggling with how to write about this experience, which i have a very good emotional memory around/about, but very little actual/concrete memory (am i even making any sense when i say that?). while prepping for next week’s post, i finally realized why.

so.. next week’s post is about all the bars we went to in seoul. on this night in particular, because it was james’s birthday, we started with two cocktails at a bar before this meal, did a wine pairing with this meal, and then went on to drink at two more bars afterward. oops! i guess i should really start taking notes during these nicer dinners.

oh well, guess that just means i have to go back to seoul! or new york, where they have opened a second location which has also earned two michelin stars.