Ambassador Petar Andonov of the Republic of Bulgaria in Seoul hosted a luncheon at the Zelen Bulgarian Restaurant in Itaewon, Seoul on Sept. 30, 2014 for his close friends. Attending the lucnehon were Ambassador Ziran Kazazovic of the Republic of Serbia, newly accredited Ambassador Milan Lajciak of the Slovak Republic, Publisher-Chairman Lee Kyung-sik of The Korea Post, and Proprietor Mihal Ashminov of Zelen (which means ‘Green’ in Bulgarian language).

Ambassador Andonov thanked the guests for their attendance and explained the Bulgarian food and wine.

The Bulgarian food is mostly considered by Koreans as being good for health and longevity, especially the Bulgarian yogurt, as they believe that the Bulgarian people enjoy longevity compared with most other peoples of the world.

There have been reports that the United Forces Army Garrison in Yongsan is scheduled to be relocated to Pyeongtaek under an agreement signed between the Korean and US governments, and The Korea Post asked Proprietor Ashminov if it would not affect his business.

“No,” he said, “it is because the US military personnel account for only a small portion of guests for my restaurant and, for that matter, also for other restaurants run by expatriates in Seoul.”

His reply may be true because, while the personnel strength of the US Armed Forces in Yongsan remained the same, if not smaller than before, business in Itaewon continued to grow and prosper and expanded into the backalleys to accommodate the ever-increasing foreign tourists.

저작권자 © The Korea Post 무단전재 및 재배포 금지