While we’re dealing in unconfirmed rumors, a Chinese restaurant called Kea So Joo is supposedly set to open in Budapest a month from this Thursday that will specialize in serving dog meat. Included among the canine-centric offerings listed on the restaurant’s website are things like kutyahúsleves bambusszal és kínai gombával (dog meat soup with bamboo and Chinese mushrooms, Ft 680), kutyahús szecsuáni módra (Szechuan-style dog meat, Ft 1,690), while the site’s recipe area includes one for “dog steak in a pan” that the chefs say is equally good if you use a cat instead. Woof.
Fortunately, as hvg.hu pointed out last week, the whole thing is an obvious hoax, perhaps engineered by some local animal-rights enthusiasts.
Unfortunately, the whole thing also shows just how little many Hungarians seem to know about Asian food, as the name “Kea So Joo” actually means “dog meat soup” in Korean, not Chinese. No wonder so much Chinese food in Hungary tastes like a bad joke…
ANTSZ wanted to fine me for having a dog in my shop. I guess it is ok to have dogs on the menu, but just not near food/drink prep. huh?
I’m missing the point of the article: are Hungarians woefully ignorant about Asian food because they don’t know that “Kea So Joo” actually means “dog meat soup” in Korean???
I told this story to my dog – and it said “woof”.
Sorry, but you have to translate this yourself …
This is a joke – a bad one. I think this is probably the work of the Double-tailed Dog party group of conceptual artists. At least it isn’t as offensive as the “used African Clothing” shop they set up on the korut.
Hungarian hot dog stand owner found responsible for the mysterious disappearance of dogs.
Nothing makes a meat processing business more profitable than free meat. Dog or otherwise.
This is not a rumor, it really happened in Hungary some 30 or 40 years ago. You might have to search old newspaper archives to find proof if you don’t believe me…
It also happened in a village in the Black Forest not too long ago.
There the main reason for slaughtering dogs however was the belief, that dog fat makes men’s hair grow again – so it was very much sought after …
well, before ranting about other people not getting their rumors straight, you should check your own sources first: The actual word for “dog soup” in Korean is most certainly NOT “Kea so joo” -”kae” can mean dog, what “kea” is supposed to refer to, only heaven knows. And “sojoo” could perhaps be a bastardization of “soju” which usually refers to a form of Korean liquor. But the combination of dog and liquor blended into one surely fine-tasting juice does not exist as of yet, at least not on Korean territory.
Here’s what the real deal is called (and looks like):
Bosintang
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bosintang
http://www.teachenglishinasia.net/asiablog/english-teacher-korea-dog-meat
It is an old 1994 hoax, according to the aforementioned link.
Kea So Joo, or Gae Soju as it would be written today according to the Korean government’s official system of transliteration released in 2000 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revised_Romanization_of_Korean), is a kind of Korean oriental medicinal liquor made from dog. It can be quite expensive and is used to treat a variety of ailments.
Boshintang is a soup made from dog that is especially popular on the three hottest days of the Korean summer. Another traditional food to eat on these days is samgyetang, or soup made from chicken stuffed with ginseng, rice, Chinese dates, and other items.
Naming a Chinese restaurant after a Korean medicinal liquor is not exactly the best move, but I have seen a lot worse…
Hello Hot Dog,
Boy did I learn from your post! One who is as well informed as you is wasting his time on chew.hu, and should instead migrate to politics.hu, where everyday “kutyaleves” is being served, so to speak!
While there is no denying that the Chinese bufés so prevalent here in Hungary are terrible, with their microwaved ‘cuisine,’ please do not try to tell anyone that the citizens of any country outside of Asia would know what the hell any Asian words meant.
Nothing from this post makes sense, is relevant, or worthwhile reading. Could it have originated from the pretentious, oafish American who haunts the downtown districts?
I’m somehow missing the whole point of the article.
First of all, why are Hungarians to blame right now?
Cause they don’t speak Korean and/or Chinese???
Second of all writer blames others to be ignorant to
Asian food, meanwhile judges the kitchen for serving
dog meat. That’s a ‘little bit’ contradictory.
I assume, whoever posted this, just copy-pasted here
without reading it through even once.
You know that journalism is dead when somebody prints a rehash of the Korean Dog Soup Story and a nationalist Hungarian attacks you for assuming linguistic competance among your readers.