The Day My Friend Said “I Haven’t Had Bread in 3 Months” and I Panicked

I was eating lunch with my friend. I ordered a sandwich.

He ordered soup. Rice. Like 6 little plates.

I said “You want a bite of my sandwich?”

He said “I haven’t touched bread in three months.”

I choked on my sandwich. Three months? I thought he was doing some intense diet. Like, monks in the mountains level.

Then I looked around the restaurant. Nobody had bread. Everyone had rice. And soup. And 6 little plates.

I whispered “...is this a diet restaurant?” He said “No. This is just lunch.”

I felt like I brought a pizza to a funeral. Wrong food. Wrong culture. My sandwich suddenly tasted like regret.

I Tried to Order White Rice and Got Judged by the Rice Cooker

I moved into my apartment. It came with a rice cooker. Fancy. Buttons in Korean.

My friend came over. I said “I’ll make rice!” Proud.

I opened the bag. White rice. Poured it in.

He stopped me. Opened my cabinet. Pulled out another bag. It was black. And purple. And had weird seeds in it.

He mixed it with the white rice. Said something about “health.”

I pressed the button. The rice came out… purple. It tasted chewy. And nutty.

I liked it. But now every time I make plain white rice, I feel like the rice cooker is judging

 me. It has a “multigrain” button. I’m scared of that button.

The Convenience Store Had Chicken Breast That Wasn’t Sad

Back home, “chicken breast” means dry, sad, bodybuilder food.

Here, I went into a CU at 1 AM. The whole wall was chicken breast.

But it said “garlic soy.” And “spicy carbonara.” And it had pictures.

I bought one. Microwaved it for 30 seconds. It was… juicy? And tasted like actual food?

I ate it standing in the street at 1 AM. A guy walked past me. He was also eating chicken breast from a pouch. We made eye contact. Nodded. Like two raccoons who found good trash.

I don’t know if it’s healthy. I just know it’s not sad anymore.

I Bought a Drink Called “Corn Silk” and My Mom Would Be Confused

I was thirsty. Went to the convenience store.

There were 30 drinks. All in brown bottles. Tea. But cold.

Barley. Corn silk. Burdock root. Five-flavor berry.

I bought “corn silk” because it sounded the funniest.

It tasted like… roasted corn water. Not sweet. Not bad. Just… brown.

I texted my mom a picture. She replied “Is that coffee?” I said “No. It’s corn hair.” She didn’t reply.

Now I drink it every day. I don’t know why. I just do.

I Started Reading Labels and Gave Up After 5 Seconds

I saw a girl in the supermarket. Holding a snack. Flipping it over. Reading the back. Very serious.

I thought “I should be an adult.”

I picked up a snack. Flipped it over.

The ingredient list was 20 lines long. All in Korean. I recognized “sugar.” And maybe “salt.” The rest looked like chemical names from a sci-fi movie.

I put it back. Grabbed the one with the shortest list. It was dried squid.

I don’t know if that’s healthier. But it had 3 ingredients. I felt like a winner. Ate it on the subway. My whole car smelled like squid. Nobody sat next to me. Victory?

Summary

I thought Korean food was just kimchi and BBQ.

Turns out it’s purple rice. Chicken breast that doesn’t taste like cardboard. Corn hair tea. And reading labels until you give up and buy squid.

📌 Things I Noticed

• Bread is not a thing: My friend wasn’t on a diet. There’s just no bread. My sandwich was the weird one.
• Rice has colors now: White rice feels illegal. The rice cooker peer pressures me.
• If you’re new: Don’t ask why the chicken breast wall exists. Just accept it. And don’t eat dried squid on the subway. People will hate you.
• 
  

This is just what I saw. I don’t know what’s healthy. I’m not a nutritionist. Don’t ask me for diet tips. I once ate convenience store chicken breast at 1 AM on the street.

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👉 [Next in this series]:  The Day I Saw Three Grandmas Laughing Over Soup and Realized I’m Aging Wrong

👉 [Previously in this series]: The Day I Went to a Korean Gym in My Street Shoes and Everyone Stared at Me