Odd experience.

I was studying Korean in a coffee shop when a Korean guy sitting nearby asked me for a moment of my time. It was pretty obviously a "whoa, white man" thing, but I was in a good mood so I talked with him.

He explained that he is a French chef, and that in a month he's going to open a French cafe in the area. As a matter of "marketing", he wants to encourage foreigners to visit, to give it an air of authenticity for the Korean customers. So, he invited me to visit, and promised a free meal if I came. I'm going to leave Korea before the opening, but I promised to pass the info on to my foreigner friends.

The marketing angle seemed pretty idiotic to me at first. But I have to admit, I do think along those lines in the US. Who hasn't chosen a Chinese restaurant based on whether or not Chinese people actually ate there? Given that situation, would I be able to discriminate between Chinese people and, say, Koreans or Vietnamese customers?

It does kind of bother me that this seemed to be an offer stemming completely out of my complexion. I wonder if he would extend to the offer to foreigners in general, or only white ones. After all, French colonial subjects in Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia were participants in French culture to a great extent. When it comes to French cuisine, I would take the approval of an Algerian with much greater weight than an that of an American. But, I am afraid, that's not a distinction most Koreans would consider.

At any rate, any foreigners interested in picking up a free French meal around Kangnam, leave a comment or message me directly, and I'll email you the guy's number.