Dinner with the devil

Outside the department store was a single sign of protest. In red sharpie on the tip of an umbrella of signs in Korean script were four English words. Lotte is like devil. That was all we could understand, but the message was simple enough: someone had it out for the conglomerate.

In the metro you can buy snacks from a Lotte vending machine. You can stay overnight at a Lotte motel, live in a Lotte Castle high-rise apartment, catch a film at a Lotte cinema, purchase Lotte insurance, buy groceries at Lotte Mart, and ride on roller coasters at Lotte World.

We chose to dine at Lotteria, the Asian alternative to McDonalds. On our way past the mall’s Women’s Trendy Zone to the racks of fake designer goods, we took pause to refuel. The family pack was a sample of Lotte’s load. Pepsi, lemonade, fries, a chicken sandwich, two mozzarella sticks, and the crown jewel of the meal: a half-fish half-bulgogi burger on a single bun.

The mozzarella sticks were delicious, but we left the half sandwich half eaten in its paper wrap. The meal was good enough grease but couldn’t compete with the street vendors, who sold corn dogs covered in caked-on crinkle fries. Nor could it compete with the previous night’s two Korean-style dinners (photos! it happened!).

But for what its worth, I’ve already been back to Lotteria for another quick, cheap dinner with the devil.