Good For Man's Health

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Terrace Trouble

I guess things were just going too well for us at Liquor Burger. The crowds have been nice in size and personality. Business has been going well. Besides me being tired, everything has just worked out for us so far.

But as of Monday, that all changed. On that day, some government workers from the district office came by to tell us they've gotten complaints that our patio is too loud. They didn't give any empirical evidence or dates or times. There's no data or facts. They just got some complaints.

So they told us we couldn't use the patio for seven days. SEVEN DAYS because of a couple complaints of noise?

Well, Jeong Mi and I went to the office Tuesday to discuss the issue. They claim our lease only covers what's inside, so we have no actual rights to the outside, despite being told otherwise by our landlord.

We also found out that there is ONE person who is complaining. ONE PERSON!!!

I'll be the first to admit that people can be loud when they're drinking. But our friends and customers have NOT been. The patio isn't seen as a place to party. People out there eat dinner, have a couple drinks and have nice conversations. We don't even have speakers out there.

There are bars, drunk Koreans, gaming rooms and students coming out of academies late at night that are way louder than we are. There are other bars and convenience stores in the area that have outdoor seating that are louder than we are. Yet it is Liquor Burger that is now facing off on a noise complaint.

Now, they told us people can be out on the patio for short amounts of time. They said the patio could be used for smoking, or getting fresh air, but there can be no food and drinks out there.

The problem is not that we are clearly being singles out (though that is frustrating), it's that I can't believe one person saying we're loud is enough to take action. There was never any check of any kind. There's no decibel meter reading or drop-ins by officials to monitor noise. One person says we're loud and that's that.

We're not done with this fight yet. We put money into the patio to make it look nice and we promote it as a big part of the comfort of our bar. People really enjoy relaxing out there.

Our next step is to go greet all the people in the apartments by us and ask if there are any problems. I also will request that if there is a problem, they call us directly and not whine like little dirty-diapered babies to the district office.

The office employees said as long as there are no complaints, there's no problem. But when I already know our friends and customers aren't being loud, what are the chances the person won't complain of a noise problem again?

Keep checking back for updates. If you're friends and family back in America, I wish you could be here to hang out. If you're living in South Korea, stop by Liquor Burger sometime for some food and drinks. We've expanded our menu to include the sliders, tacos Johnsonville cheese-filled hot dogs and a Frankenwich that combines all three.

Check us out at www.liquorburger.com!

See a bunch of great pics here!https://picasaweb.google.com/110752803825288352709/LiquorBurger

Three Day Weekend

We get Monday off, as it is a Korean national holiday. I've been here for three years now, but haven't really taken the time to understand all the holidays. I just know the major ones, and happily accept my days off for smaller ones.

Monday is National Foundation Day, which celebrates the founding of Gojoseon -- the first state of the Korean nation -- in 2333 BC.

Here's a Wikipedia page that list all the major national holidays with a brief description of each. If you're an old vet here, you might know them all. But if you're a rookie, or are just interested, learn something new!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_holidays_in_South_Korea

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Liquor Burger So Far So Good

Liquor Burger has been a resounding success so far. We're only 6 days in, but the response from the foreigner crowd in Yeonsudong has been really encouraging.

Like I've been saying, there just isn't a bad with this atmosphere in Yeonsudong. We're just filling in a void, and it's been met with good results so far.

I'm under no illusion that things will be bumping every night. And we understand that when there's nice weather on a weekend, a lot of people will go to Bucheon, Bupyeong or Seoul. But we can offer a great neighborhood bar during the week. And if people are around on the weekends, we hope they come here!

We're having our grand opening on Friday and our first beer pong tournament on Saturday. We're still looking for bands and dart players for our league.

I have to go back to work tomorrow, so Popper's girlfriend, Jong will be our part-time worker from Sunday through Thursday nights. I wish I could be here full time already.

Our customers have been friendly and fun, and I really think they feel a connection here. I certainly feel a bond to them thus far.

So it's back to Hambak for me tomorrow, and our big party begins on Friday. Here's to Liquor Burger!

Check out our pics!

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Arsenal Signs Korean Player

Arsenal just finished the transfer of Park Chu Young. I used to berate everyone here for being a Manchester United fan simply because of Park Ji Sung. But this works in my favor. Now, EVERY Arsenal game will be televised here. Awesome.

http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/player-chu-young-park-the-first-interview

Multicultural Korea

The Diplomat discusses Korea's multicultural future.

A link from a Korea story on CNN took me to a story on The Diplomat about Korea's multicultural future. I think the article makes a lot of good points about what the country might need and where it's going.

Some of the responses -- as usual -- are just ridiculous and even infuriating. Again, I'm not telling you to bust your ass and learn Korean. I'm saying that if you want Koreans to accept you as a member of their society and respect you, you'd better put forth the effort. You can get by here without Korean, but you'll never earn any respect or acceptance from the people.

Anyway, here is my response on the article's forum:

Let's get this out of the way right now. Considering all the times the Korean peninsula has been invaded or occupied over the last few hundred years, to really think Korea's "one, pure blood" myth is real is either stubbornness or a terrible case of naivety. Unfortunately, that idea still does exist.

I am an American who married a Korean girl and have lived in South Korea for three years. I plan on living here for a few more years because we're opening a small business together.

While I agree that the average Korean can be unbelievably cold and unwelcoming, it would be wrong to group them all together; just as it's wrong to think they all have 100 percent Korean blood.

My wife and her immediate and extended family have been as welcoming and loving to me as anyone in my whole life. I'm as close to them as I am to my own family. I also have a large group of Korean friends that welcomed me immediately without flinching.

Here's the issue. We, as foreigners, look at Korea and think that they owe us the same politeness we give people back home. That's not how the world works. Of course the government sets up a language test before you can get permanent status.

Why should a whole country that speaks Korean be so catering to people who speak English? I understand that English is the current international business language, but there are millions of Koreans who only need it to understand some K-pop songs, commercials and nothing else.

You know what will help you become a part of Korean society? Learn the language. From the day I got here, I studied Korean. And there is nothing about that effort that has been wasted.

Complain all you want, but if you are married to a Korean, have lived here for two years or more and still can't speak Korean, then you're a waste of a human being.

My wife spoke zero English when we met, and only knows some now because I help her study. But our language of communication is -- and probably always will be -- Korean.

While there is institutionalized racism at companies, anyone who is truly skilled is a prized asset. If we have kids, they could run this country in the future. They'll be as fluent as a native speaker in English and Korean. If you look at a lot of schools and companies, the amount of "teachers" or "English speakers" who speak both languages fluently is surprisingly minimal.

I'm not telling you to throw away your own culture. I hold true to a lot of things I learned back home. Though I attribute that less to being an American and more to having good parents and a supportive family.

Hold onto your culture, but you have to make a concerted effort to learn about Korea. That includes language and culture. Even the weird stuff like fan death is something you'd better know about, even if you laugh about it openly.

Want to be accepted? Set yourself up to be in that position. Only after that can you truly know if Koreans can handle a multicultural society. They totally accept anyone who puts in effort at being a contributing part of their country and society.

So give that a shot first, and see how the reaction to you being a foreigner changes from disdain to thanks and awe.

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Colin's Wedding

Our good friend Colin Beaton tied the knot yesterday. He and Suki have been dating for a long time now, and this was all in the making for awhile.

They held the ceremony at the Grand Ballroom in East Incheon. It was a wedding hall-type ceremony, but not quite as 80s as the others we've been to. They did, however, have smoke coming out of the walkway.

Either way, congratulations to Colin and Suki. I'm sure they're going to be very happy together.

Check out the pics here!

Liquor Burger Is Ours!

Another big move in our lives is in progress. Jeong Mi and I are opening a bar! While our stress level has increased by a million percent, it's really exciting and scary.

We already signed the papers and put down the deposits. We're now working on our interior changes. The bar was a foreigner bar three years ago, but was most recently a hostess bar. That means the interior is ugly, terrible and all black.

We also have to strengthen the stage and take out some shelves, as well as adding a hot water dealie and tiling the kitchen floor.

We're really only spending as little as possible for the opening. It'll be just enough to change the color of the walls, and do the necessary things first. Once we get rolling, we can make other changes as we go.

We're looking to open Chuseok weekend, and then have a Grand Opening the weekend after. Everyone get ready for Liquor Burger! We'll have events, specials, cheap beers, mini-burgers and a patio!!!