People who have come to Korea from North America always seem to talk about going to Ho Lee Chow's for their American-style Chinese food fix, so I was happy when the opportunity came for me to see what all the fuss was about. Most Chinese restaurants here don't serve the same types of dishes that those from North America are used to. Here, they tend to focus on dishes like jjajangmyun (black bean sauce noodles), or sweet and sour pork dishes, rather than General Tso's Chicken or Lo Mein Noodles. I'm actually not a very big fan of Chinese food, just because I find it to be pretty oily, so it really doesn't make much difference to me either way, but I do get the occasional craving, so it doesn't hurt to know where to find good Chinese eats.
The Ho Lee Chow's we went to was the one by Maebong Station on Line 3. Apparently there are a number of different locations around Seoul, so check their website. The menu was pretty extensive, but they only had about 4 vegetarian entrees, and probably only 2 or 3 of those were vegan. I went with their 'Vegetable Mapo Tofu' (11,900 won) as the server was pretty helpful in assuring me that there wasn't any egg or oyster sauce in it, and I also ordered a bowl of steamed rice (2000 won). I almost always just get Mapo Tofu at Chinese restaurants in Korea. Even if it normally comes with bits of meat in it, the cooks are almost always willing to make it without.
The plate of tofu was definitely enough for two people, and it was pretty spicy! It's a good thing I got the rice because otherwise my tongue would've been burning the entire meal. It was pretty good and tasty, but in all honesty, I've had better mapo tofu... I think I prefer my mapo tofu less spicy, a little more saucy, and maybe a bit lighter in color. The dark brown color seemed unusual for mapo tofu, no? Anyway, it was still a good meal, shared with some good company, and I'm glad I finally got to try Ho Lee Chow's.
