[그렉의 한국 엿보기] Pick-up or Delivery?

Another day at the office is complete and I'm in a taxi, winding my way through snarled traffic back towards my "officetel." Lunch feels like it was ages ago and even the wind gusting through the windows isn't enough to drown out the ominous rumblings in my stomach. Options for dinner rotate through my mind like entrees on a sushi carousel. I could cook up something simple at home; I could pause along the way and get take-out or sit down and grab a bite to eat. None of these choices seem appetizing, however, so I decide to pursue an alternative largely unavailable back at home: delivery.

The Korean food delivery network runs like a well-oiled and massive machine. From the fleets of tireless scooters buzzing up and down the sidewalks to the mysterious abandoned dishes, like fossils, left outside random doorways, markers of speedy food drop-offs are everywhere. At first, the sheer scale of the system, and the language barrier were causes for confusion. It seemed, surprisingly, as if I could order delivery from anywhere, if only I knew how.

Comparatively, delivery services in American are mostly limited to pizza and Chinese food. As technology advances, more and more restaurant orders can be called in or placed online and starving hunters can drive to the pizza parlor or diner and "capture" their already prepared prey. The drive-thru is another popular method for picking up fast food. Nowadays nearly every Burger King or McDonald's, and even some liquor stores and pharmacies offer drive-thru services to customers on the go.

[그렉의 한국 엿보기] Pick-up or Delivery? 청취

As my taxi drops me off I stop into the Chinese restaurant next to my apartment building. Face to face, the language barrier is easy to break and so I place my order, pay, and hurry home. Just as I enter my apartment the doorbell rings. Jajeongmyeon arrives steaming hot. After eating, instead of throwing it away, I've learned to place the bowl outside the door so that the clerk can collect it along with all the other cups and plates and saucers next to all the other doors. That difference can wait. For now, it's dinnertime.
/ 입력시간: 2008. 06.10. 15:06