By Jae Jae (novelty macarons), Seongnae

Warning: The following post contains adorable content that may or may not cause you to squeal like a schoolgirl at a Justin Bieber concert.

Ladies and gentlemen, have you ever noticed how sometimes the best looking food actually turns out to be pretty awful tasting? And that principle also works in reverse; sometimes the frumpy looking dishes turn out to be amazing? This rule seems to hold especially true when it comes to desserts.. I can't count the number of times I've oohed and ahhed over something sweet and then bitten into it, only to find it lacklustre and mediocre at best. But what if I told you that now you could have both aesthetic pleasure AND fantastic taste for dessert?

Wait, what..? Have your gorgeous cake and eat it too? No way!

YES WAY!

This little place called By Jae Jae, run by two sisters, does some very attractive desserts -- specifically, macarons. Feast your eyes upon these gorgeous little critters!

Are they not the most adorable macarons you have ever seen?!

Now let me start by saying that I don't actually like macarons (or at least I didn't until today). Previous experience left me scarred and thinking that all macarons were far too sweet, like edible diabetes in circular form. So at the shop today, my original intention was to buy just a couple of macarons at most. But as I stood there, with rows and rows of adorable little faces gazing up at me, I realised I couldn't choose between them and ended up buying one of each flavour. And boy am I glad that I did!

As it turns out, the macarons from By Jae Jae's are nothing like what I've had before. They're not overly sweet at all and the texture is fabulous -- crisp shell on the outside, soft and moist on the inside. And the filling.. Oh man, the filling! It's incredibly flavoursome and delectable.

Cuteness overload!

Black sesame flavour.. look at that beautiful piping!

The macarons come in two sizes: small ones, as pictured above (2,000 won each), and double-sized ones (3,500 won), and they are of course handmade and hand-decorated by the two sisters themselves. The designs and flavours change every week and you can check their website or Instagram account for updates on the current week's releases.

This week they have black sesame, salted caramel, mocha, double blueberry, chocolate banana, Oreo, and cherry rose.. and that's just for the small ones.

Cherry rose, chocolate banana, Oreo flavours

I am so sorry.. but I must eat your face.

Cherry rose. My favourite flavour so far! Amazing rose-flavoured cream 

with a splodge of cherry jam in the centre.. :F

Check out the double macarons!

Pineapple, soybean, lemon orange, strawberry yoghurt,

milk chocolate, passionfruit, double blueberry..
Urgh... I want them ALL.

Small macarons.

The showcase is empty because I bought them all. u__u

More macaron options!
(Excuse the poor photography T__T)

As mentioned before, By Jae Jae is a little place.. and by that, I mean literally little. It's a tiny shop and when you enter, you're greeted by a showcase refrigerator and that's pretty much it. There's no eating area, they don't sell drinks, it's just straight up macaron retailing and you can be in and out of the shop in a jiffy. (Unless you're like me, and it takes you forever to decide on anything.)

As the designs and flavours change each week, it's hard to imagine ever getting tired of these and I think you could easily keep going back for more. They also do custom orders (for example, macarons with people's names on them) which would really make great birthday gifts, or Christmas gifts, or any kind of gifts really.. or not even gifts, just.. something to gobble down at home all by yourself. *cough* .____.;;

If you love macarons and/or cute things, I would say this place is definitely worth checking out! Go there and show them some loooove!



By Jae Jae, Seongnae-dong
Hours: 11am - 9pm, Thurs - Sun (closed Mon - Wed)
Address: 서울시 강동구 성내동 405-45 (405-45 Seongnae-dong, Gangdong-gu, Seoul)
Website: http://blog.naver.com/wodms172
Instagram: @byjaejae
Directions: From Dunchondong Station (line 5), exit 4, take the second left and cross over to right side of the street. Head straight for four blocks. By Jae Jae will be on your right.

Banana Tree (flower pot desserts), Garosugil

Do you ever get uncontrollable urges to guzzle down enormous amounts of sugar? I know I do, and as a girl I like to blame it on PMS. Completely justifiable, right? Excuses or not though, if you've got cravings for sugar that simply must be satiated, then the lovely Banana Tree in Sinsa-dong might just be the place for you.

Banana Tree is famous for several sweet things: cotton candy lattes, flower pot tiramisu, and flower pot bingsu (Korean shaved ice dessert). While I can't speak for the lattes or bingsu as I haven't tried them yet, I can say that the flower pot tiramisu is enough to zap several cavities into your sweet tooth. And, exactly as the name suggests, it comes served in a flower pot complete with dirt, pebbles, and pretty blossoms sprouting out the top. Dessert that looks fabulous AND tastes great? Win-win!

Americano coffee, 4,000 won & "flower paap", 5,800 won

Dirt never tasted so good. :3

So what's the secret to making delicious dirt? Why, ground up chocolate cookie crumbs, of course! Also, depending on which flavour you choose (banana, strawberry, blueberry, or espresso), you can either have the rich flavour of coffee permeating your taste buds, or delicious little chunks of fruit to chew on in the centre.

Deliciously soft, fluffy, and creamy. 

And sweet. Did I mention sweet? XD 

Besides the food, another appealing aspect of the cafe is its layout and decoration. It's quite a small place with only four or five tables, which makes for a very cosy atmosphere.

If you can't get a seat, you can still get the flower pot tiramisu to take away. ^^

The decorations scattered about are quite quirky as well, and a lot of fun to look at.

Price-wise, the menu is a bit expensive, but I think it's understandable considering that the cafe is located in Sinsa-dong. Gotta love those Gangnam prices, eh?

English menu also available in-store ^^

If you're a cheapo like me, coming here every single day probably wouldn't be feasible, but I definitely wouldn't mind visiting from time to time on account of its gorgeous desserts and lovely atmosphere. :D



Banana Tree, Garosugil
Hours: 11am - 8:30pm, Mon - Fri; 11am - 2pm, Sat; closed on Sunday
Address: 서울시 강남구 신사동 526 (526 Sinsa-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul)
Directions: From Sinsa Station exit 8, make a U-turn and take the first right, or come out exit 7 and take the first left. Follow this road for about 5 minutes and it will eventually curve towards the right. Keep following the curve and look out for Banana Tree on your right.

*Note: Banana Tree also has other branches in Itaewon and near Konkuk University.

Molly's Pops, Hongdae

Ice cream is one of those foods that is extremely hard to say no to. Ice cream in kooky flavours is even more so. Ice cream in kooky flavours that's handmade in a quaint little shop with cute decorations is... GARGHHH.... Get a mop quick before someone slips in my puddle of drool! @__@

Molly's Pops in Hongdae is an uber cute little place that sells handmade ice cream and is run by a lovely, smiley lady whose daughter's English name is Molly. The owner started off making ice cream pops for her daughter in lots of different flavours and eventually decided to open up a store and share her awesome creations with the masses.

At any one time, there are usually about 12-14 flavours on offer including funky ones like Erdinger beer, wine & strawberry, and wasabi, along with unique Korean flavours like injeolmi (powdered soybean) and Kahlua makgeolli (Korean rice wine). At 3,500 won a pop (see what I did there? Hah!) they're a bit more expensive than a scoop at places like Baskin Robbins, but when you consider the fact that they're handmade and there are funky flavours you wouldn't find in regular chain stores, it seems entirely justified. Plus the owner is super nice. I don't know about you, but when I go to a place with friendly staff, I usually feel inclined to spend more money. This meme comes to mind:

XD

Anyway.. As the owner is constantly coming up with new flavours, sometimes things are rotated or eventually phased out, so what you see during one visit may not be there next time.

As an example, in winter last year I saw marscapone cheese:

And I have not seen it again since. :(

In summer, I saw milk tea:

But I haven't seen that again since, either. .___.;;

I'm not sure if those flavours have been discontinued, or if I just have bad timing with the rotations, but I've certainly learned my lesson: If you see any flavours you like, get them right away (even if it means eating several ice creams at once) because the opportunity to taste that flavour may never arise again.

Life is too short to miss out on kooky ice cream!! T_____T

Some of the pops I've tried so far:

Kahlua makgeolli. (Excuse the blurriness T__T)

This stuff is YUM. Couldn't taste much Kahlua but the makgeolli was definitely there. Makgeolli is a fermented rice wine which some people find kind of stinky. With this ice cream, you can taste the makgeolli but there isn't any of the fermented smell that usually comes when you crack open a bottle.

Wasabi. (Excuse the blurriness T__T)

I've heard that people either love this or hate it. Unfortunately, I think I'm in the latter group. For me personally, sweet and creamy + spicy and radish-y was not a good mix. Everybody's tastebuds are different though, so you should definitely try it for yourself. ^__^

Wine & strawberry, mint chocolate.

Wine and strawberry was pleasant -- sweet and fruity thanks to the strawberry, though I couldn't really taste much wine. Mint chocolate was great. This is my favourite ice cream flavour at Baskin Robbins, and Molly's Pops does it really well.

Injeolmi (powdered soybean).

My favourite at Molly's Pops so far. There are actual pieces of rice cake in it, which are soft and chewy, and the flavour of the ice cream is exactly like real injeolmi. 

This is what satisfaction looks like. XD

The store is quite small, so there aren't many seats (only a couple of small tables inside and in the warmer weather a couple more outside). However, they do offer take away if you order four or more pops, and they package it up nicely for you with dry ice. Since winter's drawing to a close and warmer weather is on the way, me thinks I shall be staking this place out a lot more. >:D



Molly's Pops, Hongdae
Hours: 12pm - 10pm, closed on Mondays
Address: 서울시 마포구 서교동 332-21 (332-21 Seogyo-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul)
Website:  http://mollyspops.com/
Directions: From Hongdae station exit 8, turn right and head up the street until you reach the roundabout. Turn left and walk for a block until you reach another roundabout. Take the first right and then turn right again. Continue down this street a few metres and Molly's will be on your left.

Crack Ice Cream Paradise, Wangsimni

This is just a hunch, but I have a sneaking suspicion that my body has two stomachs. One is for regular food and one is for ice cream. I've arrived at such a theory after observing on numerous occasions that it doesn't matter how bloated I am after a meal, my body will just automatically make more room whenever ice cream becomes involved.

Case in point: after stuffing myself silly at dinner yesterday, I was trudging around the shopping mall groaning and feeling sorry for myself. But then, as soon as I laid eyes on this place, I instantly wanted in. Perhaps it was because the name cracked me up? (Yes, pun intended. Hah!) Or, more likely, I suspect it was my dual stomach theory coming into play.

These days soft serve ice cream has been all the rage around Seoul, especially the kind with bits of real honeycomb thrown in. I daresay Crack Ice Cream Paradise is just the same, except with a quirkier twist: you can get yours with a syringe jammed into it.

Here's the menu, courtesy of their Facebook page:

It may be worth noting that not all of the ice creams come with syringes, just the Sweet Syringe, Very Berry, Oreo Crunch, and Crack Bee.

When we ordered our soft serves, we were given the choice of regular milk ice cream or frozen yoghurt. I decided to go with yoghurt for my cup of Very Berry, as it seemed like the somewhat "healthier" option. (*cough* a last ditch attempt to ease my guilt over being such a glutton.)

Crack Bee (4,500 won) & Very Berry (4,000 won)

Apparently they only use native honey from Jiri Mountain in their desserts.

I was a bit surprised because this is the kind of novelty thing I would expect to see in Japan, not Korea, and I thought the concept was pretty funky. I didn't think that the stuff tasted exceptionally outstanding or anything; don't get me wrong, it was definitely tasty, but just not on a holy-smokes-I-need-you-in-my-life-NOW kind of level. (Then again, that may be my own fault for choosing frozen yoghurt instead of proper ice cream. Seriously, who goes to an ice cream shop and orders frozen yoghurt? <__<)

For some reason though, the novelty of using a medical instrument to squirt out liquid all over my food really appeals to me. (I'm just a tad bit weird, I suppose.) So, if you're an oddball like me, or perhaps you're just looking for somewhere cool to go for dessert and you happen to be around Wangsimni, I would recommend checking this place out.

Added bonus, if you're going to see a movie at CGV, you can present your ticket for a 10% discount.

Yum yum, jabby jabby!

Crack Ice Cream Paradise, Wangsimni

Hours: 11am - 11pm
Address: 서울시 성동구 행당동 168-1 엔터식스 4층 (4th floor, Enter-6 Shopping Mall, 168-1 Haengdang-dong, Seongdong-gu, Seoul)
Website: https://www.facebook.com/Crack.ice.co.kr
Directions: From Wangsimni Station, head into the Enter-6 Mall and make your way up to level 4. Crack Ice Cream Paradise is right outside the food court, in front of the escalators.