The Tasting Room: Italian Food for the Seoul

We both like Italian food, but it can be difficult to find authentic Italian food in Seoul. However, the Tasting Room in IFC Mall was a pleasant surprise.

We started off with a pesto cherry tomato flatbread. I was skeptical at first, but it was delicious. The crust was perfectly thin and crunchy with a thin layer of basil pesto. The cherry tomatoes were sweet, and the globs of cheese were the perfect blend of soft and salty. We ate every bit of it.

We’re both pasta lovers, so we ordered two kinds of pasta. The first one was truffle prosciutto topped with parmesan. The noodles were thick and cooked al dente. I didn’t care much for the truffles, but the prosciutto was amazing! It added an extra bit of saltiness to the noodles.

The second pasta dish we ordered was spaghetti and mini octopus. I am not a fan of octopus, but Mana really wanted to try it. The octopus was not tough but was surprisingly tender. The noodles were perfect, and it was loaded with garlic. We loved the flavor! Also, even though it was an oil sauce, it was not greasy. It was very well-balanced.

You would think we were done eating, but no meal is complete without dessert. We ordered the sea salt popcorn ice cream. I side-eyed Mana when she said she wanted popcorn ice cream, but we’re adventurous, so we tried it. This was a time that trying new things paid off. The ice cream was thick and dense, and the popcorn was not stale or soggy as I had feared. They were crunchy, and the salted caramel was what dreams are made of. Mana has not really had salted caramel before, but I adore it, and this did not disappoint. We were stuffed to the max, but we (mostly Chanda) finished it^^

This restaurant has a lovely ambiance and great food. It is a little pricey if you’re looking for cheaper food, but it’s one of the few places we’d say is worth the price. And, it’s conveniently located inside the mall.

Link to our youtube video → https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ue5hdBShaSg