Whether you come for the music, the home-cooked meals, or to meet new and interesting people over a beer or two, most agree that La Vie is a comfortable place to hang out and feel at home. Look around the place and first you may notice the comfortable stance of the patrons and hear laughter in response to an animated story, along with the full bookshelf (La Vie’s open library), houseplants and artwork on the walls. One patron Eric Karrandjas says of La Vie, “They are really friendly people …

Winter weather on Jeju provides enough impetus to seek out warm and welcoming retreats. The day of our interview was one of those days. Known by a few foreign residents and locals alike, the Miru Namoo Gallery Café is a cosy space providing a mix of contemporary and traditional ambience and a place in which the founder, Kim Jo Sook, actually lived. Our welcome was one of genuine pleasure as Lee Kwan Hee smiled and guided us in.
Lee told me that it had been a quiet …