Foodie tour of Namwon uncovers surprises
Meltingly tender pork paired with wine stands out in city best known for mudfish soup
NAMWON, North Jeolla Province — Namwon is a foodie city.
And that is increasingly palpable as trendy eateries like a gluten-free, sugar-free bakery for the health-conscious and a bar known for pairing wine with jambon, jamon and salami open up around the city.
It's worth the roughly two-hour high-speed KTX ride from Seoul to sample the food options in Namwon, because unlike in the capital, venues are much less crowded, meaning more space to kick back and relax while indulging in great food.
Namwon classics like a fish soup called chueotang is one way to bring a visit to Namwon to a successful close.
The Chop Shop
This bar opened in 2019 but dates back by at least two decades, when Park Hwa-chun began raising a new breed of pigs called Berkshire-K.
Meats produced here ranges from jambon, dry-cured with sea salt and spices, to jamon, redder and saltier, but still silken, to salami, a rough textured sausage.
'We pair them with wine, which balances out saltiness. Ours isn't that salty in the first place compared to what you might have tried elsewhere. We've figured out 'Korean salty,'' said Park Ja-yeon, Hwa-chun's elder son who runs the shop.
The 32-year-old Park doesn't just serve travelers stopping by, he has also been organizing interactive programs for elementary to high school students to see how meat is processed.
For college students, such programs are more intense, allowing them to tour processing factories nearby.
Factories aside, The Chop Shop is the only establishment in Korea that not only processes meat, but also maintains pig farms, Ja-yeon said, mentioning their pig farm 500 meters above sea level. This means shorter summer weather, which helps with raising the pigs.
'We traveled down here to see if the meats taste as good as online reviews say,' said Lim Young-eun, a 20-something Seoulite who made the trip with friends last year.
'Taste is a bit subjective. What I can definitively say is that they aren't smelly. No aftertaste. I think that alone is a big plus,' she added.
Jambon, jamon and salami are not household terms in Korea, yet that does not mean they cannot be everyday foods for Koreans some day, according to the younger Park.
'For some young people I serve every day, this might just turn out to be their comfort food,' Park said.
No Sugar
Having opened in December, No Sugar is a bakery that seeks to cater to the health-conscious looking to cut back on foods with added sugar.
While removing sugar entirely from its lineup, the bakery has not sacrificed variety. On the shelves were rice sticks, brown rice chocolate loaves and madeleines.
'We want bread that's healthy with flavors,' said Lee Sung-hee, who heads the shop that is partially funded by the government. The city of Namwon won a Korean government grant to boost its local economy, and agreed to jointly run the shop with a co-op set up by Namwon farmers.
Lee, a native of Namwon, said her bakery advances a bigger cause, noting the proceeds are distributed to residents nearby aged 80 and older as an allowance.
The bakery has a high ceiling and floor-to-ceiling windows that afford a view of the surrounding landscape. This offers 'the kind of peace and quite' hard to come by at packed shops in Seoul, said Pyo Ye-lim, a Seoul resident.
'Seoul hot spots with something that tastes just as good are always packed,' she said, noting she deemed No Sugar just as tasty and much less stuffy inside.
One complaint, if she were to make one, was how the bakery seemed less invested in actively drawing people in, Pyo added, pointing out it could not be reached by public transportation.
Chueotang
Chueotang, a soup that highlights loaches, also known as mudfish, is a Namwon classic.
Thanks to immediate access to the freshwater fish, the southwestern city offers different varieties of the soup. Prepared with soybean paste and vegetables like radish greens and chives in addition to the mudfish, the soup is generally not spicy.
Perilla powder is sprinkled on top to add to the savory taste.
'We come here almost every weekend,' said Kim Nam-jeong, 77, referring to her husband of the same age with whom she has frequented Hwangto Restaurant for the last 15 years.
The couple, who have called Namwon their lifelong home, said they feel at peace when visiting the restaurant, which can seat up to 70 people. It is well known among locals — 7 out of 10 customers are locals, according to the restaurant manager.
Chueotang is believed to boost stamina, and the squiggly fish is sometimes offered as a separate fried dish. Try the crispy fried fish bone, which crackles when chewed.
Gwanghalluwon
Strolling through Gwanghalluwon, a garden compound, is a gratifying way to conclude a food tour of Namwon, said Kim Sun-joo, a guide at the city-operated garden with a pavilion.
The garden from the early Joseon era (1392-1910) was built to portray the eternal universe envisioned by Joseon officials.
'There's philosophy behind all these pavilions, halls and ponds,' Kim said. 'They're food for thought.'
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