Gangdong egg shop, shell No. 1 vs No. 2 fried eggs: Fresh Farmer

Why buy eggs at Fresh Farmer?

I figured I should at least eat one thing I eat all the time in a good version, so I headed to Fresh Farmer (프레시파머) Olympic Park Foreon Direct Store near Dunchondong Station. Unlike in the past, young people these days seem to care a lot about their health. I try to watch what I eat too, but it doesn't go as well as I'd like.

They say if food can't cure an illness, medicine can't either...

I get tempted for a moment when I hear something is good somewhere, then forget about it... Even good food only helps if you keep eating it, right? T_T Then I saw singer Park Jin-young's love of organic food and thought, let me eat at least one thing I eat often in a good version. When I thought about it, that was eggs. My mom also eats eggs regularly, whatever else she skips. So I went to Fresh Farmer to buy some.

Where is Fresh Farmer Olympic Park Foreon Direct Store?

Fresh Farmer Olympic Park Foreon Direct Store is a shop that sells only eggs with shell numbers 1 and 2.

It is at 1360 Yangjae-daero, Gangdong-gu, Seoul, Park Foreon B1 Unit B122, 125 m from Exit 1 of Dunchondong Station. Fresh Farmer runs its own farms and, by simplifying distribution, supplies the store directly from the farm, they say.

• Fresh Farmer eggs are sold only in department stores, and the Olympic Park Foreon shop I visited is reportedly the only company-run direct store.
• It's unmanned on weekends. If you want to ask about the eggs, go on a weekday!

Inside, research and development certificates and patent documents were on display, along with the feed the hens eat.

Oh, and there's Son Yeon-jae right there.

What do egg shell numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4 mean?

Fresh Farmer says it produces and sells only No. 1 and No. 2 eggs. The shell number is the number printed on the eggshell; the last digit tells you how the hen was raised.

• No. 1 (free-range, fertilized eggs): eggs from hens that roam freely outdoors. The freest environment among animal welfare standards.
• No. 2 (free-roaming indoors): not outdoor free-range, but eggs from hens raised roaming freely in a spacious barn rather than a cage.
• No. 3 (improved cages): eggs from hens raised in cages that give each bird a bit more space than enclosed cages.
• No. 4 (conventional enclosed cages): the cramped cages we usually picture, where hens are packed in with less space than a single sheet of A4 paper.

How to buy Fresh Farmer eggs: kiosk and subscription

You can come to the shop and buy Fresh Farmer eggs at the kiosk.

You can also subscribe.

Anyway, I bought both No. 1 and No. 2 eggs.

The staff member told me they're just as confident in the No. 2 eggs as the No. 1. No. 1 hens grow up in the ideal free-ranging natural setting, but No. 2 eggs are also animal welfare eggs from hens raised in a friendly environment.

Are No. 1 and No. 2 eggs really different?

Honestly, I used to wonder whether it's meaningful to care about shell numbers when eating eggs. When I was younger I had stamina and was healthy whatever I ate, so I cared less. That's why I was so curious how different these eggs would really be.

Fresh Farmer gets its eggs in on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and I got lucky and visited on a Friday morning, so I brought home really fresh eggs. Even more to look forward to!

Yolk color: No. 1 vs No. 2 fried eggs

So I fried them. (Apparently the correct Korean word is 프라이, not 후라이! Also, both 계란 and 달걀 mean egg and are correct, but 계란 is Sino-Korean while 달걀 is native Korean.)

The No. 2 yolk was the yellow we all know, and the No. 1 yolk had a more orange tint. Some people see an orange yolk and ask whether coloring was added, but the color comes from things like the feed the hens eat, and it's definitely not coloring, they say.

Yolk springiness and fishy smell in No. 1 and No. 2 eggs

What was clearly different was the height and springiness of the yolk. Even after poking it with chopsticks a few times, it didn't burst open.

Honestly I can't tell much taste difference between No. 1 and No. 2, but they taste a bit richer, and they seem less fishy than other eggs even when cold. Some sensitive people struggle with an eggy smell, and I sometimes get a strong fishy whiff when steamed egg (gyeran-jjim) cools down. But with these eggs, it's less.

Oh, and the shelf life is long too. I thought it would be shorter because they're antibiotic-free and organic, but it wasn't.

I haven't tried a hot, freshly boiled egg yet, and I'm so curious how it would be as a nicely soft-boiled egg.

How much are Fresh Farmer No. 1 and No. 2 eggs?

Fresh Farmer No. 1 and No. 2 eggs seem to run around ₩10,000 per 10 eggs. They're naturally a bit pricier than No. 3 and 4 eggs, and the price isn't fixed. But you can keep eating them and it's not an extremely high cost, so once I finish all 20 eggs, I'm going to think about buying again.