Live Octopus Breath

I entered the restaurant not knowing what to expect, and when the main course came to the table, my heart skipped a beat...I was about to try LIVE OCTOPUS. The plate was full of small tentacles. There were about 75 in total, all squirming around violently. I asked one of my co-workers how I was supposed to eat them, and he demonstrated by casually scooping up a generous portion with his chopsticks. He then dipped them in sesame oil, and sent them down the hatch. "Make sure you chew them up really good," he warned, his mouth full of tentacle. "Sometimes they can stick to your throat on the way down, and that is very dangerous." I took a sip of Macali (Korean Rice Wine) and wondered how much more I would need before attempting to eat something that was still moving...

Three glasses later, I had the octopus in my chopsticks, and was dipping it into the sesame oil. The tentacle was writhing under my grip, trying to shake itself free. I moved it towards my mouth, and with as little hesitation as possible, I popped it in and started chewing. It stopped moving after a few chews, and all I could really taste was the sesame oil, which was quite nice. The texture was hard and slimy, like wet rubber, but it really wasn't all that bad. The weirdest part was the way it moved down my throat after swallowing. It went in slow motion, because of the suction cups on the tentacles...

As repulsive as it seems, the live Octopus wasn't too bad at all. Although it's not something I'd go out of my way to order, I found it rather pleasant. I helped myself to more after my first try, and after we finished the first plate, my co-worker motioned the waitress for a second portion.

The really disgusting part of the meal came after the second portion of octopus tentacles, when the waitress brought BOILED OCTOPUS HEAD to the table. This made me gag on sight. The bowl had about 5 baby Octopus heads in it. They were purple, with beady eyes and oversized craniums. I poked one with my chopstick and it felt like a water balloon. Even my co-workers looked hesitant, except one, who looked at me knowingly and muttered in broken English, "Good for stamina!" I asked them if they ate this often, and most shook their heads. My friend Yong Won, however, told me that I must try one. I told him to try it first, and he did. As I watched him chew the Octopus head, I noticed a black film develop on his lips. I asked what it was, and he replied, "Black water from inside octopus!" THESE HEADS WERE FILLED WITH OCTOPUS INK!!! After Yong Won swallowed, it looked like a pen had exploded inside of his mouth. "Your turn," he said.

I picked up the octopus with my chopsticks and stared briefly into its eyes. The guy next to me handed me a towel and told me it was ok to spit it out. Needless to say, I took him up on the offer. The Octopus head was squishy and hard at the same time, and the ink filled my mouth like a gusher from hell. It was too much for me to handle. I gagged and spit it out all over the towel. Everyone laughed, gave me a pat on the back, and told me I was very brave for trying.

Later that night, we went to another spot down the street, and I was relieved when they ordered fish jerky....as if that isn't weird enough!