FatManSeoul

How can something that is 80% a good idea end up going so very wrong?

The Cafe formerly known as Sobahn has reopened as Bibigo*. Along with Zen Kimchi, Fatman was involved in some early test marketing for both Cafe Sobahn and the new Bibigo concept. A concept that was really, roundly panned for having a silly name. Apparently, once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your marketing.
And it’s a darned shame.

The food isn’t too bad. It’s got a very corporate, packaged taste, but the veggies are fresh and the ingredients have been reasonably well thought out. For mains, there’s a choice of regular bibimbap, dolsot bibimbap, or the salad-heavy “bibigo.” For each of these you can chose from sprouted brown rice, white rice, black rice, or barley, and from a variety of sauces. The sauces are where things first start to get tricky, and show the weaknesses . . . do you want gochujang, ssamjang, lemon . . . or is it citrus soy? And is that sesame sauce green? What on earth is a green sesame??? Does that look green to you? If so, please adjust your monitor.

You can also chose to have beef, chicken, or tofu added to your bibimbap for an extra 1,000 won, making this a moderately expensive plate of food.
Things are just as confusing on their “tapas” menu. Leaving aside how on earth you can pass of any of these foods as tapas, the translations that have been done on this side of the menu are either careless or deceptive. The Korean menu is reasonably clear, although you could take issue with calling a stack of gareddeok and sweet potato covered in a candy-sweet gochujang sauce “ddeokbokkum” . . . but the English menu is completely nonsensical. What on earth are “Silver Noodles” ~ would you guess 잡채? Fatman wouldn’t. And 누룽지 셀러드 does not sizzle, thus negating the idea of calling a dish “sizzling salad.”

This wouldn’t be such a big problem if the main point of Bibigo weren’t a lynchpin of CJ Food’s grand plan to globalize Korean food. Perhaps the American and Chinese renditions will be different in tone, but the Korean flagship is far too upscale in tone and price to be accepted as “fast food” the way they’re aiming to join the market. Also, careless, stupid translations like “silver noodles,” “sizzling salad,” and “green sesame sauce” for products that aren’t silver, don’t sizzle, and aren’t green is going to damage them in the end. Other products aren’t explained enough for an outside audience (such as “ssam sauce” or even worse, “kohot” for gochujang) that isn’t familiar with Korean food. Even their English page isn’t terribly well edited. How can they expect to succeed overseas if they ignore the advice of people who know the industry, and then ignore basics like accurate descriptions of their very own food?
The food isn’t bad, and the dining space in Gwanghwamun is attractive . . . but without some quick moves, all CJ’s efforts to turn this into an international chain are going to be for naught. It doesn’t matter how healthy it is (not very, under all those sauces), fast (only if you’re getting bibimbap – tapas and side items all took time), or well-designed your interior is (although Sobahn’s was nicer).  Skimp on things like solid test marketing and editing, and you’re left with an overpriced K-town mall food court restaurant.

In other words, not so bad for a quick lunch downtown, but don’t hold your breath for the Bibigo chain to sweep the outside world and become the next McD’s.
To get there, head west from the south point of Gwanghwamun, towards the Hammering Man sculpture. Bibigo is on the ground floor of the Gwanghwamun Officia building, where Cafe Sobahn used to be. Prices for main dishes start at 7,000.

*Only the Gwanghwamun branch. Die-hard Cafe Sobahn fans can still get their fix on the campus of Seoul National University.