[TRAVELS WITH JESS] SEOUL OF THE SOUTH FOOD TOUR (ATL)

So this was SUCH a great experience. I haven't done a "crawl" of any kind (whether that be food or alcohol haha) and when this opportunity came up in affiliation with KPOP Minicon, I decided to go for it! Below are my honest thoughts with each location we went to:

Stop #1: KOREA GARDEN (525 Peachtree Industrial Blvd, Suwanee, GA 30024)

Theme: Family Style/Communal

Rating: 7.5/10

EXTRA - The owner was low key a cutie... But you didn't hear me say that haha. The food was really good and out of all the places, I will most likely come back to this spot again. I learned that rice is to be placed on the left side and soup on the right. The more you know!

Stop #2: YOGI (80 Horizon Dr STE 201, Suwanee, GA 30024))

Theme: Comfort Food

Rating: 8/10

EXTRA - Never have had fried Japche bites in my life until this stop. Pretty good and would try again. The Bulgogi here made me want to slap my mama it was so good. Maybe I'll bring my mom here to do just that and she can slap me back with how good that meat was..

Stop #3: BELLAROSE (2148 Duluth Hwy #104, Duluth, GA 30097)

Theme: Beauty Store

Rating: 1000/10

EXTRA - THE AMOUNT OF FREE PRODUCT I RECEIVED WAS CRAZY.. I'm talking FULL SIZED PRODUCTS were in that bag.. We were able to get in the shop before their grand opening the following day which was a super cool experience. The staff was super generous with snacks and photo taking abilities which gave me a great way to commemorate the experience! (shoutout to my tour guide Eonni for being so freaking great)

Stop #4: THE 901 KARAOKE (3505 Gwinnett Pl Dr NW #105, Duluth, GA 30096))

Theme: Karaoke baby!!!! With foods that go well with drinking haha

Rating: 7/10

EXTRA - Scored a PERFECT 100 during my time on the mic. "Can't Hold Us" by Macklemore will forever be my go to song for occasions such as this haha. The best thing I had on the table was the fried chicken bits... That will always slap.

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Overall, I enjoyed myself more on this food tor than I did at the actual convention haha. Both were great, but the amount of history and cultural "tidbits" I learned from my guide made me have an experience that was so much more than just eating food and meeting new people. I was able to gain some new found courage to try different spots that I would have NEVER tried by myself. Cheers to the journey everyone!

If you want to try to experience something like this in ATL, here is the link to the main company that hosts these tours! : https://www.exploregwinnett.org/

DATE: AUGUST 15th, 2025

LOCATION: Atlanta, GA