Boong-O-Pang

One of my friends have been pestering me for ages to try these Korean red bean fish shaped pastries. These snacks are sold in a stand outside of The Galleria on the weekends (and weekdays?) during the evening. The Galleria is basically a Korean T&T, except it existed long before T&T made its mark in Toronto.

These little red bean fishes, Bungeoppang, are pure bliss. They are crispy on the outside, with a tinge of butteriness. When you take your first bite, it’s warm, chewy and a little airy on the inside, which somewhat resembles Japanese mochi. The red bean has the right consistency and sweetness. It wasn’t too dense or watery. They are 3 for $2 or 8 for $5. Do yourself a favor and get the 8 for $5 because I know I can definitely eat more than 3 in one sitting. You have to eat it right when they make it. It just doesn’t taste nearly as good when you leave overnight, or even an hour.

They also sell these massive corn dogs that are the size of my wrist. They look like they were dipped in 7 layers of batter. I didn’t try it because it would be probably a mouthful and cause some serious heartburn.

While we’re on the topic of Korean things, I’ll give a bit of background on my friend who suggested I try these fish shaped goodness. She's Chinese, but has this closeted obsession with Korean culture. She loves Korean dramas, music, food, underage boy band who look like girls, etc. We even have this ongoing joke that she should start a blog called “bibimblog” (bibimbap+blog). Okay, I know you guys must think it’s a bit corny…but it’s all sorts of GENIUS if you ask me! She also likes to keep me updated on any new SNSD songs. Here’s a video of the catchiest song you’ll ever hear:

After I heard this song a year ago, I was hooked and it tormented me for a good month. Those girls are oozing with so much cuteness, it’s almost sickening. They end off every syllable with a cute pose and expression. There’s one thing I’ve always wondered though, how on earth do they make any money when there are 9 members?

Infectious Korean pop songs and catchy beats don’t stop at girl groups. I feel quite conflicted when I watch guy groups such as Big Bang because I find them insanely attractive. It makes me feel a bit wrong since they are likely 5 years my junior, and I’m not really into the whole cougar thing (even though cougars are all the rage these days). If this feeling could be captured in a picture, it would be this one:

Pedobear + the host from “How to Catch a Predator”