Prior to today, I thought I had eaten fresh fish before. However, tonight, I was taken to new levels. First I went to my Sunday volleyball game and ate 회덮밥 after, like we always do. For dinner, my host family wanted to go out to eat and eventually after bouncing around from one crowded restaurant to another (when the weather is nice, everyone likes to go out, right?), we settled on this raw fish restaurant. I was a little disappointed at first because the 오리 (duck) restaurant was too crowded for my host family's tastes. However, the raw fish place ended up being quite the experience. First you go into this aquarium looking room and go over to a bunch of tanks filled with particular fish. Then you point to the one you want and this guy with a net fishes it out for you. He weighs it, tells you how much it is, you agree and bring your basket filled with fish (note: these fish are flipping violently, sort of like fish out of water would) to the first guy of this conveyor belt of butchers. The first guy cuts off the head and guts the fish. The second guy cleans it a little more thoroughly, the third guy fillets it, and finally the last guy makes it look presentable by slicing it up and wiping it down with a wet towel. Sound too mechanical to be true? Yea, well it was pretty much all business. You sit down for a while and voila, out comes a heaping platter of raw fish. It might go without mentioning, but I'll add it in anyway: it was flippin' delicious.
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| The first 3, while the 4th has his own work station to make everything look good. The man in the blue jacket is the "fisherman" or person who plucks the fish out of the tanks. |
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| The first guy's job is the most gruesome. |
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| My host mom was petting the flat fish (that's what she called it) saying, "Sorry but soon you'll be really delicious." |
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| The bowl at the bottom of the picture is a hot stone bowl with rice and roe, while the bowl in the center is soup made from the fish's head. The platter of raw fish had been cleared away by this time. I was so hungry that I forgot my touristy instincts to photo-document every meal I eat. |
