"Limited to 5 per person" 3,000 won giant toast: The 40-year-old handmade taste preserved by a Vietnamese daughter-in-law

At the entrance of a traditional market in Seoul, a savory aroma stimulates the tip of the nose. Here, there is 'Giant Toast' that is grilled with plenty of cabbage, eggs, and various vegetables for just 3,000 won. This shop, which is so popular that customers can purchase a maximum of 5 per person, has been carrying on the taste of old-fashioned toast for 19 years. This toast, grilled with plenty of various vegetables such as eggs, cabbage, chives, and carrots, has been loved for a long time because it can fill you up even at a low price.

"I wasn't going to do it after Mother passed away," but she picked up the iron plate again

The protagonist grilling the toast is Jeong Su-hyeon, a daughter-in-law from Vietnam. She is running the shop as the second generation, following her parents-in-law who have been in the toast business for over 40 years. In fact, Jeong Su-hyeon intended to quit the shop after her mother-in-law passed away. She had intended to follow the wishes of her mother-in-law, who had opposed it, saying, "Never do it after your mother passes away; it's enough that only your mother suffers." With the heart of not wanting Jeong Su-hyeon to suffer any longer, her mother-in-law always encouraged her by personally demonstrating diligence and sincerity.

However, what called her back to the market was none other than the regular customers. A few months after her mother-in-law passed away, contacts from customers looking for Jeong Su-hyeon continued, asking, "Where did you go?" or "Why did you move?" The hearts seeking that nostalgic taste became the driving force that called Jeong Su-hyeon back in front of the hot iron plate. Jeong Su-hyeon expressed her intention to silently guard this place by inheriting her mother-in-law's character and persistence, saying, "The support sent by the customers gives me strength." Her determination, "I will be diligent without greed and work hard thinking of the customers," contains her longing for her mother-in-law and her sincerity toward the customers.

Preparing 15 heads of cabbage every day, extreme labor of cooking 16 at once

Despite the low price of 3,000 won, Jeong Su-hyeon's rule is 'not to skimp.' She prepares ingredients with the mindset that, "If it's not enough while eating my son's portion, it feels a bit bad. It was the same during my mother-in-law's time; it's better to have leftovers than to be short." Every morning, to maintain fresh taste and color, she personally prepares more than 15 heads of cabbage, spending two hours just on ingredient preparation. This is because "if prepared in advance the day before, the taste and color may decline." Jeong Su-hyeon does not use a scale but mixes ingredients by eye, proving the generous generosity inherited from her mother-in-law through the amount of ingredients.

When the full-scale cooking begins, the work becomes intense. Since the temperature varies depending on the position of the large iron plate, Jeong Su-hyeon must continuously move over the plate to find the appropriate temperature so that the ingredients do not burn. "Because the temperature is different, I have to move around every corner of the plate," she explains. In particular, since the filling is thick, the key is to cook it evenly to the inside. Jeong Su-hyeon uses the know-how of melting margarine on the iron plate and then moving the ingredients over it to grill. Replenishing margarine according to the speed at which the ingredients cook to add a savory taste is also her unique trick. During peak order times, she must grill about 16 toasts at once, and she makes an average of 300 slices of toast per day. From 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM, enduring the hot heat and oil mist for 9 hours is by no means easy. Due to the sweat and oil mist poured out all day, it is difficult to endure without a mask, and in winter, she also suffers from the difficulty of the oil mist meeting the cold air and sticking to her skin.

"I can't just pass by someone who is hungry," a shop that has become a community room for market people

The reason Jeong Su-hyeon can smile even amidst hard labor is thanks to the warm affection of those around her. Her husband, Jong Min-sik, who works as a bus driver, becomes a reliable supporter of his wife, such as visiting the shop in his spare time to help organize ingredients. Also, during busy times, market neighbors volunteer to clean the store or lend a hand. Thanks to the neighbors who help, saying "She is like our own child," the shop serves as a small community room for the market people beyond being a simple restaurant.

Jeong Su-hyeon's heart leads to 'sharing.' This is because she does not forget the memory of feeding a family of five with a handful of rice containing sweet potato filling during the poor days of the past. Because she knows the sorrow of hunger better than anyone, she also generously shares within a reasonable limit for those worried about meals because they lack money. Her sincerity, "I cannot just pass by someone's hunger," is being conveyed as the warmth of the market beyond the 3,000 won toast. While not only grilling toast but also working on making coffee using coffee beans brought from her hometown Vietnam, Jeong Su-hyeon's day flows hotly again today.