Sarah of Seoul in the City + Kyotofu

Sarah is the blogger behind Seoul in the City, a website chronicling her adventures in the world of food, travel, and design--with an emphasis on her three-year stint in Seoul, Korea, of course!  Before I met her, I visited her site often in preparation for my trip to Korea this past January. I took her recommendation for the best pork belly (sam gyub sal) in town, and boy, it did not disappoint.  I only wish I had had more time to visit all the other places Sarah wrote about!  If you are planning a trip to Korea and good food is important to you, do not miss her blog.

Incidentally, she made a big move to NYC from Seoul, and I got to meet her in person to do her headshots. Thanks, Hana, for the introduction to a new friend! I absolutely love meeting and working with people who are passionate about food.

Sarah is also the Director of Sales, Catering, and Events at Kyotofu, a modern Japanese dessert bar in Hell's Kitchen, a place that deserves a write-up of its own. After taking her portraits there, she treated me to some seriously good desserts. That chocolate chip cookie you see is one of THE best chocolate chip cookies I've ever had. And guess what? It's gluten-free (using Thomas Keller's Cup4Cup gluten-free flour). That other beautiful concoction you see is a black sesame sweet tofu panna cotta, also gluten-free, and for the lactose-sensitive out there (ahem), dairy-free as well. They make their own tofu, and it is superb. Thanks to Sarah, I also got to sample the green tea creme brulee, miso brownies, green tea muffin, and white sesame soft-serve...you will not believe any of it is gluten-free or non-dairy. I don't have celiac disease, but I know quite a few people who do, and this place is just amazing for gluten-free folks. Even if you're not gluten-free, Kyotofu's concoctions are stand-alone awesome...so good that I went back a few days later for more goodies ;)

Sarah pours hoji-cha syrup over the kuro goma sweet tofu (black sesame tofu panna cotta), which adds just the right balance of sweetness atop the nutty panna cotta...I really liked this dish.

All images © 2013 Christine Han Photography