“Just eat well and live deliciously!”
A feast for me who worked hard today

The second book, a collection of food essays from the newsletter 'Weekly Baejjangi' (written by someone who really likes Baemin), published by Baemin since 2020.
The twelve essay Avengers have gathered together, including the writings of eleven essay writers with solid fan bases, and the writing of Lee Yeon, who participated exclusively in this book.
This book, with its upgraded writing style compared to the first part, provides warmth and fun to those who are working hard to make a living this year.
The ordinary yet magnificent stories contained in a single meal prepared by twelve writers are filled with the hope that our today will be a little more special and filled with joy.

How many seasons will we love?
Even though we've passed the midwinter of eating fried udon and now it's early summer, when we're gulping down kongguksu (noodles with soybean paste), we still have a long life ahead of us.
Ordinary days like this, where we see scenery like walking, listen to songs like scenery, and have conversations like songs, continue on and on.
I like this kind of loose and soft life, like winding a thread around and around.
There are people by my side who I will never part with, even after sharing kongguksu, after dinner, after seasons, and after time passes.
I am not lonely.
---From "Gosuri_From Midwinter Fried Udon to Early Summer Kongguksu"

After living like that my whole life, I suddenly encountered a school of anchovies in an unfamiliar land, Syracuse, Sicily.
I ordered today's pasta, and it came with dozens of anchovies the size of my fingers.
The pasta noodles were so obscured by the anchovies that you couldn't even see them.
I quickly pushed the pasta towards my husband.
Because I don't even want to make eye contact with Anchovies.
My husband took a bite and his eyes widened.
He pushed the pasta back in front of me, telling me to eat it quickly.
Trust me and try it.
I thought you'd really like it.
At that moment, the traveler's spirit of challenge stabbed me in the ribs.

---From "Kim Min-cheol_The Destination is Food"

You have to enjoy it while you can.
It is not enough to have a complacent(!) mindset of just sitting on the terrace and drinking beer when you have the chance.
On days when such good weather is considered rare, you have to make that day a Temac day by any means necessary.
It is also necessary to diligently check the weather forecast app to find the 'good weather days' and make plans in advance.
Because neither time nor seasons wait for us.
We must live the best today we can, right here, right now.

---From "Kim Shin-ji_In response to the question, 'What is your favorite beer?'"

In fact, it's hard to say that Tonki is the best in Tokyo in terms of taste alone.
However, there is a unique characteristic of this place where the meat and thick fried food are separated, and the combination of the moist rice with a glossy sheen, the pork stew with a perfect balance of flavors, and the cabbage salad that is nothing special but keeps you coming back for more is what makes this place memorable as 'delicious'.
If I go back to Japan, I will definitely visit this place again.
I hope I can still say I'm a regular here in 10 years.
In an age where things are easily created and disappear, ‘being together for a long time’ is so precious.
---From "Mugwasu_Food Loved by Muguwasu ③ Pork Cutlet"

We make many resolutions for the new year, but it's not easy to live a better life this year than last year.
These days, just because someone is ahead of me, I feel like I'm falling behind.
There are plenty of people who are better at everything than me.
But I think I can grill meat well, so I'm grilling meat today too.
Just sharing a delicious meal with my wife is enough to feel the happiness of a simple dinner.

---From "Standing Egg_I'm serious about grilling meat"

Today, too, I recited “one iced cafe latte to-go” at the espresso bar a minute away from my house.
As I stood there, holding my coffee, I recalled the faces of the owners and employees of several cafes who had made my favorite iced cafe latte so delicious.
I felt like I often remembered the face of my ex-lover.
And so another era passes by.
I start today with a new iced cafe latte.
---From "I want to take out an iced cafe latte"

Food is amazing.
Because it can convey your feelings beyond just taste.
But you have to try that too to get good at it.
And you have to receive that much too.
I had my first afternoon tea at a hotel and was inspired to prepare a tea set in the office.
When I went to a friend's housewarming party, I saw that they had hand-written the menu, so I also wrote down the menu by hand, like I do at fine dining restaurants.
Experience is important, and making that experience your own is important.
For me, the restaurant is a place where I can learn how to connect well with people.

---From "Lee Yeon_Master of Yeonsikdang"

There is a cafe right next to the 'Underline Bookstore' that I run, but when I suddenly want to drink mixed coffee like that time, I just pour water into the coffee pot.
The cup is also a paper cup, not a mug, on purpose.
Mixed coffee tastes best when drunk in a paper cup.
Looking back, I think the only thing that helped me endure the unfamiliar and difficult work life was the taste of something familiar, something so familiar that everyone knows it.
Maybe it was the only hope that could sweeten the bitter reality, not the bitter coffee.
When you need something sweet, the first thing that comes to mind is mixed coffee.
I doubt it, but I hope that mixed coffee will remain popular no matter what new and excellent beverages emerge.
---From "Lee Yu-mi_My Corner of Faith, Mixed Coffee"

That's why a meal prepared by someone feels like a sign that someone in this world is thinking of me.
It makes me feel respected and loved because it's something I'm not good at.
It becomes an unforgettable imprint even after 20 years, it becomes the key to starting a love, and it becomes a language that contains comfort that cannot be fully expressed in words.
What about meal kits? What about delivery food?
The 'home-cooked meal' in front of me is warmth, connection, and the power to get back up.

---From "Im Hyeon-ju_Home Cooking, the Comfort of Feeling Like Home Cooking"

“The food is here.
“Let’s start with eating.” When the food is set, the aroma that wafts out makes people stretch and get up from their seats one by one. They go to the seats of those who are still seated and say, “Aren’t you saying we should all eat and live? Come quickly!” and drag them away.
Sitting around like that, asking each other why we were working overtime and talking about what to order next (talking while eating is a national rule), that trivial time gave me the energy to finish the remaining work.
.
-Jeong Moon-jung_Since we are talking about eating to live, let's eat first"

If you eat half the food in the world, it's okay to hate the other half.
Anything will do.
It may not be so strange that I dislike about half of the things that my family, friends, and other people around me like.
Our society has long created a collectivist culture where those who don't like the "same thing" are treated as weird.
In the future, I hope we can create a culture that is more free and respects each other's tastes.
It may seem like I'm being a bit grandiose about not liking cucumbers, but I actually have quite a few sad memories of being a picky eater.
So, I take this opportunity to shout, 'Picky eaters, unite!'

---From "Jung Ji-woo_Picky Eaters, Unite"

I often imagined the time spent baking dumplings with care, counting the number of friends, and wrapping them up nicely.
Then, there came a point where the child's sincerity became mysterious.
For me, who considered cooking a punishment, Mandu's talent, enthusiasm, and kind heart were questionable.
Later, it occurred to me that there is no more sublime expression of affection than when someone makes food for another person with their own hands.
After this, I don't get as angry as I used to when I go to a restaurant that tastes really bad.
Whether it was sincere or not, whether I was paid or not, whether it was their job or not… I developed a respect for anyone who gave me a full meal.

---From "Jung Ji-eum_Bbangsooni's Observation Diary"