The Dining Lab (더다이닝랩) is probably one of my favorite restaurants in Seoul. Located in the Donggyodong (동교동) neighborhood, I'm surprised to find this restaurant away from the more crowded area of Hongdae. The restaurant is small. They have only a couple tables and a bar area that is facing the open kitchen. If you want to see the action in the kitchen, sitting at the bar will definitely get you that. Their food is really good. I've been here a couple of times and tried different things and I love them all. I'm more of a meat person overall so I'm really picky when eating my veggies, but the way the cook their veggies here is good. Everything is cooked in the right way and seasoned really well. Although, the portion is a little small compared to the price, but I can live with that since I don't come here everyday :P. If you're looking to try something new around Hongdae area, I would definitely recommend this place.

Pictured: Salmon Gravlax & Beurre Blanc Sauce, Salmon Steak with Roast Bacon, Burger with French Fries, & Sous-vide Ribeye Steak with Roasted Vegetables.

Seoul Restaurant Series: The Dining Lab (더다이닝랩), Donggyodong (동교동), Seoul, South Korea.

Today, I went on a little lunch date with my mom at New England Lobster Market & Eatery in Burlingame, CA. We found this place through yelp and decided to give it a try since we didn't know what to have for lunch. The ambiance of the place is really nice. They have plenty of tables on different rooms that you can sit on, so you wouldn't have to worry to have to fight for tables during lunch/dinner time (although I read the place got pretty crowded on weekends so you might have to wait for tables). We ordered the Dressed Lobster Roll, 1lb Maine Lobster Platter, and Lobster Corn Chowder to share and they were delicious. The lobster roll and the chowder have plenty of big lobster chunks and the lobster meat is very fresh. Eating it plain is good, but we squeezed some lemon juice to the meat and dip it into the melted butter that came with the order and we liked it better :) Also, they have a market section where you can buy fresh lobsters and east coast shellfish right from the restaurant.