#2 Locos

This week JGirl, whilst wandering in her 'hood spotted a new sign reading 'Locos' out of the corner of her eye... what else could it be but ANOTHER new Mexican in the foreigner ghetto... upon further inspection however we discovered it was a place calling itself 'Locos - Lobster Sandwich'. We were intrigued and as two Brits with little experience of lobster decided we simply had to try it.

We were immediately welcomed and ushered upstairs by a super attentive waiter (SAW - perhaps a bit too keen) we were impressed by the space and the interior decoration (some of which was still going up!).

The upstairs is the real asset of Locos - a great view of the triangle-y bit by the barbecue restaurants of Kyungridan - an excellent spot for a spot of people-watching.

Intrigued by the concept of a 'lobster sandwich' platter and ordering semi-blind we had no idea what to expect really.

For the seemingly-bargainous price of 24,000 we were told we'd get a whole lobster's worth of lobster plus fries and onion rings.

Our drinks came first and with a full explanation from SAW- we ordered a Warthog "creamy" ale from the Big Rock Brewery and a "crisp, dry cider". The cider delivered on the crispiness but the ale lacked the aforementioned "creamy" quality and was "like a normal lager" according to JGirl.

When the lobster platter arrived SAW hovered over our table for those few disconcerting seconds too long  - as Brits we are not only unaccustomed to lobster but also to overly-friendly service. 

The lobster itself was delicious! It came in the form of a tear-able brioche-y kind of open-able sandwich pinned with a gigantic wooden skewer which, rather than filled to the brim was filled *at* the brim. This could have been a disappontment to some but we made do - there was enough sweet bread left for a good old fashioned chip butty!

JBoy said the lobster was tender but meaty and JGirl agreed that despite limited lobster experience she enjoyed what she had eaten.

BUT

a word of warning: we were a little disappointed by the portion size overall- we know lobster is expensive but the things it came with were definitely not so it felt a little sparse for 24,000 KRW.

The delicious lobster, average squid rings and chunky fries were accompanied by a little ketchup, garlic mayo and coleslaw but, again, not enough - we had to ask for more of the mayo (which we agreed was excellent - JBoy usually hates mayo). This was soon followed by a late-arriving salad, curiously. JGirl had to skip this, the healthiest part of the selection, as it was sprinkled with crispy bacon bits (JBoy gobbled it all up)...

PS - JBoy wants to return and try the 'Beef Plate' which looked like a good old British Sunday roast - review pending!

THE VERDICT (all marks are out of ten)

FOOD

Originality: 8

Taste: 7.5

Quality Of Ingredients: 7 (the lobster alone would have been a 10)

Portion Size: 4

SERVICE: 9 (minus one point for the slightly uncomfortable hovering of SAW)

Location and people-watching potential: 10

VALUE FOR MONEY: 6

OVERALL EXPERIENCE: 7

LOCOS Facebook page

#1 Coreanos Kitchen

As Seoulites who live and work north of the river we rarely go Gangnam Style... there has to be a pretty good reason to make us drop our prejudices and get on the orange line...

After sampling the delights of (almost) all the Mexican options in the Itaewon / Hongdae / Jongno areas we finally took the plunge and headed 'south of the river'  - had we been in London a cabbie would have refused our fare...

So we headed for the bright lights of Gangnam in search of a new Mexican 'experience' and the question is... could Coreanos deliver?

After a little walk from the mysteriously named Apgujeong Rodeo station we managed to find the place tucked away downstairs on a busy street filled with a mix of shops, eateries and a strange glass-panelled photo studio.

We arrived a little later than usual 'Korean lunch time' so the super-friendly waiter (SFW) was all ours and explained the menu and the lunch specials. They had a typical range of burritos, tacos and quesadillas with some fusion-y options such as kimcheese, galbi pork and red pepper paste (ssamjang). JGirl enquired about fishy options and we were thrilled to be informed that they could do ANYTHING with no meat. This opened up the menu for us in a way that doesn't normally happen in Seoul.

So far so good.

Having skipped the most important meal of the day JBoy decided to ask about the Breakfast Burrito. Once SFW informed him that it included a hash brown JBoy was sold. 

JGirl went to her go-to Mexican dish of shrimp tacos and to take advantage of the meat-removal wide open menu we decided to share some pork kimcheese fries, minus the pork.

During the very short break we admired the plethora (OK, six) reviews framed on the wall. Apparently that Coreanos began life as a food truck in Austin, Texas before migrating to Seoul. It seems that any restaurant worth its salt these days began life as a food truck, but no matter.

The Breakfast Burrito was... weird, but in a good way: a squidy, cheesy omelette hugging a rasher or two of crispy American-style bacon and that greasy, crunchy delightful hash brown. Coriander (SFW called it 'cilantro' making JGirl rage silently) and tomato topped it off and left an overall healthy-unhealthy feeling of balance.

JGirl was more than happy with the shrimp tacos: "just the right amount of fillings and PROPER grilled shrimps not the frozen, soggy-after-defrosting bleurgh which you often get".

The fries were crispy and thin - just how JBoy likes them - although the vast amount of toppings caused them to quickly become a squidgy (but delicious) mess.

The beers on offer were many and varied, JGirl sampled the pale ale upon SFW's recommendation but wasn't wowed.

Finally, stuffed, we were hoping to bring you news of the margaritas (always a good way to round off a Mexican) but SFW informed us that the restaurant closes each day after the 'lunch service' - we were quite surprised because this was certainly no Michelin-starred white tableclothed restaurant. Denied our margaritas, we headed out.

THE VERDICT (all marks are out of ten)

FOOD

Originality: 7.5

Taste: 9

Quality Of Ingredients: 8

SERVICE: 9 (minus one point for not warning us about closing time)

Ability to cater for pescatarians: 10

Ability to split a card payment: 10

VALUE FOR MONEY: 8.5

OVERALL EXPERIENCE: 9

http://coreanoskitchen.com/

Coreanos Kitchen Facebook Page

About Us

We are JGirl and JBoy: two friends with a penchant for Mexican food who have spent the last few months sharing meals in Seoul trying everything there is on offer - minus the meat for JGirl, who is a pesky pescatarian, (this means BBQ is off the menu for these joint jaunts).

SADLY our time is coming to an end as JGirl prepares to leave Seoul in a few months time. We wanted to document and share our last dining moments before the clock runs out... thus the EAT SEOUL COUNTDOWN was born.

Six months, two friends, one city... infinite food possibilities.