Korean Festival

My most-anticipated event for this October has come! Korean Festival 2009 which run through this weekend (Oct 10-11) at Eastwood Park. Eastwood is home to one of Australia largest Korean communities together with Campsie and Strathfield. It originated in the late 1980s as a Campsie-based event that was part of the Carnivale multicultural festival program, co-ordinated by the NSW Ethnic Commision and now is organised by the Korean Society of Sydney.

I was a bit late today and missed some morning performances like Korean Folk Game and Drum performance, but I still enjoyed the Korean traditional dance while hopping around from one food stall to another. Some others performances like Korean Pop music, Soul & Funk Band, singing and talent contest did entertain the folk and the food stalls satisfied my craving for Korean food like pajeon (seafood pancake), kimchi, tteokbokki and odeng. There were also some stalls selling Korean wines and served free tasting. One stall from Sydney's Korean Tourism was attracted folks with some free brochures and Korean books including travel guide and Korean food book.

I bought some Korean red ginseng product and a bottle of Makgeolli, a Korean traditional wine made from rice which gives it a milky, off-white color and swetness. Makgeolli and Pajeon, what a perfect combination!

(A stall from Korean Tourism office providing free brochures and travel guide books)

(Korean red ginseng products on display)

(Odeng)

(tteokbokki, spicy rice cakes)

(A stall selling some Korean wines)

Some stuffs I brought home: Honeyed Korean Red Ginseng, Red Ginseng jelly and candies, and a bottle of Makegeolli

I L♥ve Korean Food

The 'I L♥ve Korean Food' promotion just started last weekend. The so-called 'Dine and Win' promotion from Korea Tourism in Sydney offers a chance to win a trip to Korea for two person while you can enjoy the 'special $10 dish' from the participating restaurants across Sydney.

I couldn't wait longer to enjoy the 'special dish' as I reckoned $10 is pretty affordable for a Korean food in this city, so I dropped in Kobow restaurant in the city last weekend. I picked this restaurant since I had never been there before and heard that the ambience is quite unique and they got friendly staff. Well, they indeed are friendly and as it was Chuseok day they gave free complimentary of colorful Songpyeon to enjoy the spirit of Chuseok. One disappointment was I couldn't find the 'special $10' dish on the menu, a short story that I hesitated to ask, I picked bulgogi and kalbitang (short ribs soup) to warm up the wet and chilling evening. After they served the 4 small plates of banchan (side dishes), my bulgogi came in a quite different look with 'plenty of' veggies, not the usual bulgogi I normally had but the taste wasn't a disappointment though. For those who love Korean music, they have LCD TV's playing latest Korean music to livened up the atmosphere.

(My Bulgogi with colorful veggies)

(My hot and yummy kalbitang)

(Banchan: seaweed and potatoes in sweet chili sauce, seasoned soy bean sprout and kimchi)

(Colorful Songpyeon to celebrate Chuseok)

Dine and Win

October is just around the corner! What's happening in October? For Sydneysiders, October used to be popular for Good Food Month Event and this year it has been replaced by Sydney International Food Festival, but it's still all about good food. A list of foodie events will run the whole month of October, from Night Noodle markets to World Chef Showcase will bring celebration of amazing food scene to the city.

On the top of that, 'I Love Korean Food Festival' - a Korean food promotion from Sydney's Korea Tourism, has been on my top list. Some Sydney's best Korean restaurants in the CBD, Eastwood, Newtown and Strathfield will be offering diners the chance to try some iconic dishes of Korea including Bulgogi (BBQ beef), Galbi (beef ribs), Dolsot bibimbap (mixed rice/vegetables in a stone pot), Japchae (Korean style sweet potato noodle), Haemul Pajeon (seafood pancake) and more.

Aside from enjoying some yummy Korean dishes at the special low cost of $10 diners will have the chance to win a trip to Korea for two persons including return flights from Sydney to Seoul plus three nights hotel accommodation in downtown Seoul. Dining out on the weekend, I considered this as my weekend hobby rather than a desire to win the trip.

For details of participating restaurants please visit the official website: www.ilovekoreanfood.com.au Entry details for the 'Win a Trip to Korea' will be open on the same webpage from 1 October, 2009.

(Picture courtesy of Korea Tourism)

And here is a creative picture representing Korea in World Chef Showcase event:

(Picture courtesy of : Sydney International Food Festival)