Vegetarian Lunch at the Moga Museum Restaurant

When I went to the Moga Museum in Yeoju City with Sally and her friend, Jennifer, it was a very relaxing and peaceful tour around the grounds. All the walking and browsing around made us all very hungry by lunch time and it was fortunate that there was a restaurant in the middle of the Moga Museum site. This was a vegetarian restaurant, since the museum primarily showcases Buddhist art. Jennifer ordered a set meal for all of us.


One of our appetizers were this crispy, fried seaweed sheets. This was wonderful and my favorite of all the appetizers. It had a delightful crunch to it and the taste was light and with a hint of saltiness. I delighted in dunking pieces of it in soy sauce, making it even more salty.


We also had some mixed greens that had a light, spicy dressing on it. Everything was so fresh and had a pleasant crunch to it. All of us were grabbing chopsticks-full of this delightful salad.

We also had acorn jelly salad that had strips of kim (seasoned dried seaweed wrapper). It also had spinach, chives and julienned kimchi strips that gave a tangy flavor to the salad.


Here's another favorite banchan or side dish of mine - the Biddendeok Pancake (ground mungbean pancake). This one was plain and simple with just some chives mixed in with the batter. Wonderful when doused with soy sauce and eaten while it is fresh from the frying pan.

Next, the waitress brought out our soup, Dwenjjang Jjige (Fermented Soybean Paste stew). Our stew was loaded with handmade dough chunks, spinach, daikon radish cubes and slices of hot green chilis. This made me sweat with the heat and the spiciness.


It was a good thing they brought out the rice, because my mouth was really burning with the soup. The rice was served in individual stone pots like this and was really very good. Each rice kernel was soft and cooked to perfection.

I was pleasantly surprised to see sauteed spinach in the bottom of the pot when I mixed it.


Here are more sidedishes that were brought out for our meal. A quartet of veggies ranging from mugwort stems, doraji strips, daikon strips and some green leaves that I have no idea what it's called.


A pair of pickled peppers that I didn't pick to eat. My mouth was hot enough. Jennifer, on the other hand, seem to really enjoy munching on this fiery pickles.


Oooh, these braised berries were awesome! Braised in soysauce and God-knows-what, these berries make a delightful popping sound in your mouth when you crunch on them and your tongue gets a burst of flavor. Sigh, I love this wonderful appetizer.

I think this sidedish were made out of chili pepper leaves. If not, they're some form of wild mountain greens that the restaurant staff regularly gathers for the vegetarian dishes on the menu.


We also have stalks of some kind of leafy plant, also braised in soysauce. Everything, such as the soy sauces and chili sauces, in this restaurant is homemade.


We also have fried tofu slices and tea with our meal. It was a very savoury meal, even for a carnivore like me. I can eat like this once in a while, but not everyday. But after indulging in a lot of red meat and fatty dishes, this vegetarian meal has made me feel like a good girl.