Chigae

Chigae is the word for "stew" in Korean. It is pronounced /chee-gay/. In any case, chigae is my go-to food when I'm not sure what else is on the menu, and I'd say that just about 9 out of 10 restaurants either have chigae on the menu or will make it even if it is not. In fact, I so regularly eat chigae, that my friend Eric has nicknamed me chigae. We'll see if the name sticks. Anyway, just last night I went to a small restaurant located 20 feet from my doorstep, and guess what I ordered?

Well, surprise surprise, I wanted Chamchi Chigae (or tuna stew), but they only had Gimchi Chigae (fermented cabbage and pork stew). So, I got the gimchi variety. Well, not only was the chigae the best I've had in Korea thus far (who knew this little hidden gem was right across from my house), but the waitress, a woman who looked as though she were in her late 40's or early 50's, brought me an overwhelming amount of side dishes. Now, banchan (the Korean word for side-dishes) are usually part of any Korean meal, and it's expected that for a single person dining out three or four different sides (all typically vegetarian) are brought to the table. Well, last night, the woman brought me about 12 different side dishes, as well as a second soup and fried pancake both of which I did not order. As she was virtually smothering me in food, she was also, from what my poor Korean skills could tell me, insisting that I call her "Mom." So, I guess you could say that I now have a Korean Mom. I think she was also trying to tell me that she wanted to make me her "fat baby" because those were the only words of English that she apparently had. Maybe she was just calling me fat. Regardless, about 45 minutes later, not seemingly even dented the food before me, I was incredibly full, and ready to leave. So, I got up, asked for the bill, and was totally taken aback by the fact that the entire meal cost a mere W6,000 (6,000 won) or as of 11/1/11 $5.38. Hot damn. In the words of my Poppa, I had just eaten at a total "find." I'll be back soon, but this next time, I'll make sure to first skip lunch.