"No Free Meals"...Stubborn Blogger Jeon Myeongsu Defends the Taste of Daegu

Food and nutrition major and son of a famed restaurateur on Daegu’s Jongno Street
"I reject any dish where seasoning hides the original ingredients"...an unwavering philosophy
Only about 100 out of 3,000 restaurants make the cut...only the "real deal" gets posted

Amid a flood of restaurant promotions on social media driven by advertising fees and sponsorships, there is someone who records eateries based solely on "my own taste" and "my pride."

The person in question is 57-year-old Jeon Myeongsu, who lives in Duryu-dong, Daegu.

Through his blog, titled "Myeongsu's House-Buying," which bears his own name, he continues a purely personal culinary journey focused on Daegu and the nearby Gyeongbuk region.

Jeon Myungsoo was recently taking photos at a restaurant in Daegu Seobu Market where diners can taste Daegu-style raw beef (mungtigi) and odeuregi.

Jeon's stubbornness about taste is both inherited and the product of his academic background.

Raised by a mother who ran a famous Korean restaurant on Jongno Street in Daegu, he developed an exceptional palate from a young age.

After majoring in food and nutrition at university and building a theoretical foundation, he went on to succeed the family business and has since experienced every twist and turn of the restaurant industry, including restaurant management and seafood distribution.

He is currently the head of a certified real estate agency office. However, after the Daegu real estate market slumped in the wake of COVID-19, he drew on his academic training and past experience to embark in earnest on restaurant explorations.

Jeon's criteria for selecting a restaurant are clear: it is all about "the flavor of the raw ingredients."

Meat must preserve the original aroma and flavor of the meat itself.

Namul (seasoned vegetables) must retain the characteristic fragrance of the greens.

He firmly rejects any dish in which aggressive seasoning overwhelms the inherent taste of the ingredients.

His area of activity is strictly concentrated in Daegu and the Gyeongbuk region.

While parts of Seoul, Gyeonggi, and the Chungcheong area are included, he rarely covers Busan, Honam, or Gangwon.

His candid reason is that "the taste of Daegu that I have been accustomed to since childhood is my standard."

He adds that "what people call objectivity in taste ultimately means being honest with your own palate," and he makes no secret of his affection for Daegu’s distinctive cuisine, which is rough around the edges yet deeply flavorful.

His approach to running the blog is the very definition of "fastidious."

Although he has visited more than 3,000 restaurants over the years, only a little over 100 of them are currently introduced on the blog.

Of the remaining roughly 200 posts, more than half did not even make it to the introduction stage for failing to meet his standards.

In particular, he adheres to a strict principle of "zero promotional fees and no free meals."

He even feels uncomfortable accepting a single bottle of soda or soju offered as a token of appreciation by restaurant owners, and turns them down.

There are rare exceptions when platform rules, such as those on Instagram, require him to disclose items he has received. However, as a rule, he flatly refuses all advertising proposals.

He said, "I felt dismayed by the reality in which, because of the mushrooming of advertorial posts, everyone calls every place a must-visit restaurant," adding, "Since I run this blog under my own name, I want to provide readers with genuine information."

At one time, his blog had 3 million members for its real estate information, but it now communicates with about 14,000 devoted fans.

The numbers have declined, but the quality and reliability of the information have deepened beyond comparison.

His steadfast efforts to uphold "the pride of Daegu’s taste" are becoming a refreshing guidepost for those exhausted by misleading restaurant recommendations.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.