Mhays wrote:I somehow survived, and moved on to the two desserts, which were warm punch served in metal bowls. One was very similar to horchata, and even had bits of rice floating in it, and the other was very like mulled cider- except it had been made with persimmons. In between bites, Sparky played with the other children (there were many) at the turtle/coi pond.

I know that the rice-water dessert drink, which has been fermented in some fashion, is called sheek-h[y]eh (aka "sikhye," as noted on Wikipedia). The persimmon-based drink you had was probably soo-jung-kwah (aka "sujeonggwa"), which can be an acquired taste, especially with a lot of ginger. I prefer sweet "sikhye" myself.

Mhays wrote:So, thank you once again LTHers for opening up another corner of the world for us...

I might not be the biggest fan of buffets (of any kind), but I'm glad you got a great intro to Korean food! Hope you get to have many more satisfying meals like it.

--Dan

Just wait, Dan - I didn't like buffets either (truthfully, they're still not my preference) until we had kids

However, a buffet with the cooked-to-order at the table option is an incredible improvement!

Thanks again...