waffles!

I think waffles are like a new national dessert over here in Korea. Most cafes have them, it may even be safe to say all cafes sell them.

Ambience
Of course there are shoddy waffles and good waffles, so at the recommendation of a friend, went to the heart of Seoul city for some good waffles and other breakfast essentials. Butterfinger's was the place and you could taste the Americana as you walked in. Menu was full of sweet goodness of breakfast and lunch variety and it was definitely one of the better waffle places in town. It was packed too, on a weekday afternoon. Apparently weekends are just crazy in here.

I love Belgian waffles so wasn't as thrilled as I would have been had a 'gaufre' was placed in front of me, but still was a good dining experience 'Americana in Seoul' kind of meal.
Mum had bagles and a friend had pancakes. The nice point of difference here was the berry compote instead of the standard maple syrup. Oh and you got to choose the kind of butter you wanted served with your meal.
Simple basics served with lots of extra trimmings.

After Fika, comes Ikea

IKEA CAFE @ LOGAN

Having been to FIKA the other day made me a tad nostalgic for a lunch I had at IKEA the week or so before I left for korea. The highlight was probably the princess cake. There’s a bit of  mechanical and rigid feel about dining at a cafeteria where you serve yourself and the tagline is probably ‘you get what you pay for’. The place was packed out with tired shoppers 

Although with chicken parmigiana and dessert, I didn’t feel like I got what I paid for, seeing as my meal tallied upto be around $25. Granted I did opt for two desserts and a side of salad and coffee. Still nothing was so spectacular that you'd come here just to eat. If you are in the area or there to pick up some furniture, by all means come.

If not, I think I could pass the cafeteria quite easily on the highway.

Fika

Went to Fika, swedish cafe which apparently in swedish means 'to have coffee/cake...with friends?' what a meaning for such a simple word.

Was a little reminiscent of an uppity Ikea store but the dessert range would put Ikea's princess cake to shame. So many different form of sugar to choose from.
Being no Swede myself, I can't confirm how authentic it tasted but I had a brownie which has a copious amount of the letter K in the name.
Was nice to run into something a bit out of the ordinary and I'd definitely go back for some Fika indeed.

Bloom and Goute

went to Garogugil again (yipeeee).

went to Bloom and Goute for lunch which has been described as "like a quaint cafe in the middle of a flower garden"....more like "like a busy cafe decked out in flower on a strip of glitzy road of cafes in the middle of the city".

They are known for flowers and cheesecakes, and of course we ordered everything but cheesecake. lol. will have to come back and try their famous cheesecake.

Apparently the cafe was born when a florist met a baker, hence the fresh cut flora and supposedly awesome cheesecake......which I didn't get to try because I was tempted by a chicken sandwich and lasagne. The sandwich was creamy, but nothing like those 'wholesome/healthy' sandwiches and foccacias you get in Aus. Lasagne was again koreanised and wasn't as creamy and tasted of canned tomato sauce. Definitely not home-made, but still was delicious in its own way. You just can't expect the same as back home.

tognini's

Tognini's @ Spring hill market place, Brisbane

Still in Korea, but thought I'd blog about the cute lil deli/cafe I went to a few weeks ago before I left. I hear it's busy during meal times, but I went at an obscure hour too early for dinner and some time after lunch.

They sell take home/ already prepared meals which seem like a good idea as there are lots of single city dwellers nearby.

Still had a lovely coffee sess with a pal. Good vibe, sort of like deli meets cafe. Nice selection of dessert and the Americano was enjoyable. Can't wait to go back when I'm back!