Texas Street Cafes

Type of Establishment: Street Cafes and Stalls

Location: All up and down Texas Street, directly across the main road from Pusan Station. Easily reached by subway or bus, or ask any cabbie for "texas-suh"--they all know it. Getting back home seems to be the tough part. Not that there's a lack of transportation--there are plenty of taxis all day and night--but you'll have to stand up to catch one.

Review: If you like chillin' outdoors and digging the street life over cold beer and hot food, get on down to Texas Street. The street has a real international flavor, and has been catering to foreigners for longer than most of us have been alive--first for American GIs (hence the "Texas") and now mainly Russians, though on any given day, you might be shmoozing with Aussies, Burmese, Europeans, Phillipinos, and still of course, North Americans. When a big ship or convoy is in town, T-Street is chock-a-block with sailors, though most of the time it's pretty quiet, and it draws quite a few regulars from the local teaching, business, and military communities.

Texas Street has a (deserved) reputation as a place for prostitution, though it is usually of the more quiet, back-alley motel variety. These days however, the Russian ladies that work there are more likely to try to sell you a pair of leather shoes or cheap Nike knock-offs. In daytime, cheap shopping is the main event.

The street cafes sell various kinds of booze, though beer and Soju are the most common. They also do food, from street swag to killer burgers to, well, just ask. The ajummas who run these places often speak bits and pieces of 19 different languages and some of them are as kind as adoptive mothers.
Some notables:
Miss Song--her cart is called "Norway Bar" though there is neither a sign nor a Norwegian in sight. Ask for Miss Song in the vicinity of Manila and the Baikal Club (near the Baskin Robbins). She runs a clean little ship and her burgers are the best that this reveiwer has had in Pusan--she'll top it with whatever you want and uses American beef and bacon. On any afternoon or evening, there can be a healthy mix of foreigners from around the world, from sailors to local expats.

Directly across the street from Miss Song is Christina, who does more or less the same thing. Her "Heart-attack burger" is not to be missed. She's a charming lady who, like Miss Song, speaks great English and can be very entertaining.

Down the road, in the alley next to the Chinese school is Miss Moon, who has just opened a new Soju Bang (indoors) called the "Casey Moon". It's not unlike a lot of other Soju Bangs around town, but the draw here is Moon herself--she enjoys the company of foreigners, speaks English, and will be happy to have you. She cooks now too. A cozy little place.

There are lots of little cafes down on "The T", and everyone has their favorite. Check them out and experience Texas Street for yourself.

Copyright © 2002 Worldbridges    Copyright Policies