我身邊很多朋友都喜歡吃韓國美食，例如韓式炸雞；部隊鍋或石鍋拌飯，我也不例外，在冬天時，我有次和朋友吃部隊鍋，裡面加了火腿、香腸、拉麵、起司、豆腐等食材，和我及朋友常吃的麻辣鍋差很多，算是一次嘗鮮，但是，還不錯，反正聚餐重要的是朋友間打鬧鬥嘴的氣氛，美食通常是點綴，有美食的話是加分，沒有的話，也沒關係。
對於這個韓國商品展，在逛之前，我認為應該會賣很多泡麵、醃製品及韓國酒，果然，一進去就看到不少醃製品，各式韓式泡菜，讓來客試試味道，因為我算是喜歡吃辣的，我覺得都很好吃，至少比我媽做的泡菜好吃多了，不過，海鮮類的醃製品看起來蠻厲害的，也很道地。
和一位介紹韓果酒的大姊聊了一下，大姊主要推韓國人蔘酒，大家應該都知道，韓國人蔘是當地特產，所以，韓國人蔘酒是一種具有悠久的歷史與濃厚的韓國文化背景的商品，它不僅是酒，更被視為具有保健功能的滋補飲品，所以，價錢也較昂貴，大姊介紹，韓國人蔘酒主要看裡面的人蔘年份，採用一年人蔘的酒，價錢較便宜，但效果不好，人蔘酒要有效的話，至少要七年人蔘，但是，價錢會稍高一些，我看了一下，很多瓶人蔘酒都沒寫採用幾年人蔘，這樣客人怎麼知道是買對了，或買錯了。
最後，看到一款我之前沒聽過的韓國商品，鍋巴餅乾，是把鍋巴做成餅乾嗎？這有甚麼特別的？和試吃員要了一些試吃，嗯，味道一般般，看來紅不起來，至於常看見的韓國辛拉麵之類的泡麵，倒是沒看到，也對啦，辛拉麵就連便利商品都買的到，在這裡賣辛拉麵的效益應該不高。
最後，離開前，看到有攤位賣韓國魚板，一串居然要賣八十元台幣，我回想，之前吃某家韓式料理餐廳餐廳時，韓國魚板是吃到飽的，那時應該多吃個幾串的，這類商品展雖然可以看到一些特色商品，不過，價錢是否划算，還是要仔細評估，不過，一定會比飛到當地買便宜，像人參酒，我就有點在考慮，要不要買一瓶，送給長輩養身，不過，最後還是決定不買了。
A lot of my friends are really into Korean food—things like Korean fried chicken, army stew, or bibimbap—and honestly, I am too. One time in winter, I went out with some friends and we had army stew. It had ham, sausages, instant noodles, cheese, tofu, and a bunch of other stuff. It was really different from the spicy hot pots we usually eat, but it was a fun new experience and actually pretty good. Then again, when it comes to group meals, the real highlight is usually the lively atmosphere with friends joking around. Good food is just a bonus—nice to have, but not essential.
Before checking out the Korean product fair, I expected there to be a lot of instant noodles, pickled goods, and Korean liquor. And sure enough, the moment we walked in, there were tons of pickled items, especially all kinds of kimchi. They were offering samples too. Since I like spicy food, I thought they all tasted pretty good—definitely better than the kimchi my mom makes. Some of the seafood-based pickles looked super legit and authentic too.
I chatted for a bit with a woman at one of the booths who was promoting Korean traditional liquor. She was mainly introducing Korean ginseng wine. As most people know, ginseng is a big specialty in Korea, so ginseng wine has a long history and a lot of cultural meaning. It’s not just a drink—it’s seen as a health-boosting tonic, which is why it’s also more expensive. The lady explained that the price depends on the age of the ginseng used. Wine made with 1-year-old ginseng is cheaper, but not very effective. To really get the health benefits, it needs to be made with ginseng that’s at least 7 years old—but of course, that costs more. I looked at a few bottles and noticed that most didn’t say how old the ginseng was. That’s kind of annoying—how is a customer supposed to know if they’re getting the right one or not?
Later, I came across a Korean snack I hadn’t seen before—crispy rice cracker chips made from nurungji (the scorched rice crust at the bottom of the pot). I was curious, so I tried a sample. Meh, they were just okay—not something I’d expect to become super popular. Surprisingly, I didn’t see any Shin Ramyun or other famous Korean instant noodles there. But I guess that makes sense—you can easily find those at any convenience store, so selling them at an event like this wouldn’t be very worthwhile.
Right before I left, I spotted a booth selling Korean fish cake skewers. They were selling for NT$80 per stick! That made me think back to a Korean restaurant I went to where fish cakes were all-you-can-eat—I should’ve eaten a few more sticks back then! Events like this are fun because you get to see unique products, but when it comes to price, you really have to consider whether it’s worth it. That said, it’s still probably cheaper than flying to Korea to buy this stuff. I was seriously thinking about getting a bottle of ginseng wine as a gift for an older family member, but in the end, I decided not to.
