Insa-dong and the Cat Café located in Myeong-dong

Today got to check out the shops of Insa-dong with a friend and her two girls. This area is great because there are just so many vendors and shops selling Korean trinkets that you would want to send back home for family or friends.

We grabbed lunch at a Korean BBQ restaurant serving a dish called Galbi or Kalbi. Galbi or kalbi generally refers to a variety of grilled dishes that are made with marinated beef (or pork) short ribs in a ganjang-based sauce (Korean soy sauce). The meal included soon du and various side dishes (please see pictures) that you filled inside of a leaf with your meat and shove into your mouth all at once. We laughed because we have heard Americans refer to this meal as “beef-and-leaf”. Trust me this meal is delicious!

After we ate lunch we also checked out the Cat Café located in Myeong-dong on the 6th Floor. This place really surprised me. I didn’t know what to really think about the concept but knew I wanted to go check it out because of its popularity among the Koreans.

First, this place is VERY clean! There is shockingly no smell of cats what so ever. The litter boxes are hidden behind a door marked cat’s toilets, and there is no food served. When you first arrive you have to take off your shoes as you do in most places around Korea and put on the flip flops. You must sanitize your hands too.

There is no entry free for this café but you are required to order a drink for $8,000w. The drink list ranges from cold to hot beverages depending on what you are in the mood for. The green tea lattes are super cute because they have a kitty face on them. Really, if you wanted, you could stay all day and play with these cats because there doesn’t seem to be a time limit on how long you are there.

The cats are very friendly but have their own personalities. When you are there you will see some are way more active than others and some only appear when the food and treats come out (Hmmmm…. sounds like a cat we know).

I have heard there is also a dog cafe but have yet to check it out. Anyone out there prefer one over the other? I think I might be a bit bias because of our love for Beanicus.

Feel free to check out the pictures and comment!

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