Jeju restaurant date with spicy pomodoro pasta: Cultured

It was so hot all summer that I had absolutely no appetite,, and before I knew it, I hadn't gone out to eat in ages.

But it's suddenly gotten much cooler over the last few days, right? With the change in the air, I went out for a meal with my boyfriend for the first time in a while at Cultured (컬쳐드), a great restaurant in Ara-dong, Jeju City ✨

Cultured location and basics

• Address: 1F, 81 Seungcheon-ro, Jeju-si, Jeju Special Self-Governing Province, South Korea (제주 제주시 승천로 81 1층 컬쳐드)
• Hours: 11:00–21:00 (break time 15:00–17:00 / last orders 13:50 and 19:50)
• Parking: Public parking lot behind the restaurant

How is the table spacing?

The first thing I noticed when I walked in was the spacing between the tables. At Italian restaurants, tables are often packed together so you can hear every conversation next door, right? It wasn't like that here, so it was nice to eat while the two of us talked comfortably.

The space was roomy and felt pleasant overall. And there were so many staff members. They were kind, too, so we left after a really nice meal 🙌🏻

Also, the restroom is inside the restaurant. There are surprisingly many places where you have to go outside and come back in during your meal, right? It's hard to know this sort of thing before visiting, so I'm noting it down 👀

What we ordered at Cultured

• Steak salad
• Pomodoro pasta
• Margherita pizza (puff-pastry dough)
• 2 glasses of Coke Zero

You can order drinks for free according to the number of guests. 💛 It can quietly add up when drink prices get tacked onto the meal, you know,,

The steak salad I didn't think much about

The steak salad came out first. The moment the plate arrived, I went, oh my,, Every ingredient was so generously sized that it was satisfying to pick up with a fork. The sauce was especially good. Rather than sitting apart from the vegetables, it felt like it tied the whole plate together.

I usually think of salad as just a palate cleanser before the pasta arrives, but this one looked filling enough to make a meal of on its own.

Pomodoro pasta can be this good?

Honestly, we chose this because my boyfriend thought a cream sauce might be too rich. I'm not normally someone who seeks out tomato-based pasta.

But plot twist!!! The one I expected the least from ended up being the biggest hit, haha. First of all, it's spicy. A little heat rises behind the tartness of the tomato sauce, and it cuts through the richness perfectly.

They don't skimp on ingredients here either, so something catches on your fork with every bite. Ahh,, if it was this good even to someone like me who doesn't like tomato pasta, that says it all, right? It seemed like the people cooking in the kitchen are good at everything.

Puff-pastry dough or regular dough: it comes down to taste

We ordered the Margherita on puff-pastry dough. One bite and the buttery aroma came rushing through; the layers were distinct and wonderfully crisp. I loved that texture 👍🏻 But my boyfriend said he probably would have preferred regular dough..?

This was the only thing we disagreed on that day. To sum it up: choose puff-pastry dough if you like a crisp texture and buttery aroma, or regular dough if you prefer the chewy bite of a classic pizza. It wasn't that either one was worse—it was more a matter of preference.

Next time, lunch sets with a group

The only shame was that, with just two of us, there were limited dishes we could order,, Every time I passed the next table, I kept wondering, what dish is that? ㅠㅠ So next time, I'm going to come with more people, order lots of things, and share them. The lunch set looked really well put together, so I'm planning to return around lunchtime.

We had three slices of pizza left. When I asked for them to be packed up, they put them in a kraft box with a handle. The takeout was packaged so prettily that I didn't even feel bad about leaving some behind 🙌🏻

After a few days in Jeju of nothing but black pork and seafood, you start craving something different, right? It's a good place to stop by then, and also nice for a date where you can eat and talk quietly.

Rather than somewhere to eat quietly alone, it was a place that's great for coming with someone and sharing a variety of dishes. We hadn't even tried half the menu, so next time I'll gather enough people and give the lunch set another go 🙌🏻