A version of this article appeared in June 2010's issue of the Groove magazine. Photos in the printed magazine are by Aaron Brown; photos below are my own.
Don't confuse the club with a pop band you'll hear here. With free cover and cheap drinks, Ting Ting's has earned a spot as a 'first bar' while out in Hongdae. By 11pm there's a decent crowd around the bar, while the pool table and Phoenix electronic dartboard has some great games to watch. Venture to the bar for anything from an inexpensive cocktail (4,000 and up) to a 병 (bottle) of Guinness for 10,000 won. Plenty of English menus and top-shelf liquors available, but drinks are just part of the fun.
Sit back on the zebra-patterned couches against the wall and take in the energetic cherry-tomato-red walls. Play with the photogenic Jagermeister bottle, flirt with the bartenders, or watch some sports on the big-screen TV. Alternatively, try spinning around the poles for a bit of pole dancing - but watch out for the ashtrays awkwardly attached to them.
With no stage for live music, the speakers pump out a mixture of pop, rock, and hip-hop - nice for warming up before going to the live band you came to see. While Jason Mraz, No Doubt, and "Fill Me Up Buttercup" might inspire you to sing along, it's kept below deafening decibels so you can conversate as well. After a few drinks, maybe you'll feel like a rock star after a show.
The practicalities are all here - plenty of lockers and bathrooms in the building, enough seating for your larger parties, and enough bars and clubs around to move on after your third (seventh?) round. Every Saturday night features a 'three-for-one' deal - one cover charge gets you into FF, Gogos, and of course Ting Ting's. After a few drinks, maybe you'll feel like a rock star after a show. With a good mix of foreigners and Koreans, it earns a solid thumbs-up.
Directions to Ting Ting's: Hongik University station, line 2, exit 5. Turn left just after the KFC as you always do, then right at the T. Turn left at the Tourist Information Center, and walk uphill to Hongik University. Turn right, pass Hongdae Park and walk a couple hundred meters. Turn right at the 7-11 and look for the red-and-black themed Ting Ting's just around the corner.
© Chris Backe - 2010
Don't confuse the club with a pop band you'll hear here. With free cover and cheap drinks, Ting Ting's has earned a spot as a 'first bar' while out in Hongdae. By 11pm there's a decent crowd around the bar, while the pool table and Phoenix electronic dartboard has some great games to watch. Venture to the bar for anything from an inexpensive cocktail (4,000 and up) to a 병 (bottle) of Guinness for 10,000 won. Plenty of English menus and top-shelf liquors available, but drinks are just part of the fun.
Sit back on the zebra-patterned couches against the wall and take in the energetic cherry-tomato-red walls. Play with the photogenic Jagermeister bottle, flirt with the bartenders, or watch some sports on the big-screen TV. Alternatively, try spinning around the poles for a bit of pole dancing - but watch out for the ashtrays awkwardly attached to them.
With no stage for live music, the speakers pump out a mixture of pop, rock, and hip-hop - nice for warming up before going to the live band you came to see. While Jason Mraz, No Doubt, and "Fill Me Up Buttercup" might inspire you to sing along, it's kept below deafening decibels so you can conversate as well. After a few drinks, maybe you'll feel like a rock star after a show.
The practicalities are all here - plenty of lockers and bathrooms in the building, enough seating for your larger parties, and enough bars and clubs around to move on after your third (seventh?) round. Every Saturday night features a 'three-for-one' deal - one cover charge gets you into FF, Gogos, and of course Ting Ting's. After a few drinks, maybe you'll feel like a rock star after a show. With a good mix of foreigners and Koreans, it earns a solid thumbs-up.
Directions to Ting Ting's: Hongik University station, line 2, exit 5. Turn left just after the KFC as you always do, then right at the T. Turn left at the Tourist Information Center, and walk uphill to Hongik University. Turn right, pass Hongdae Park and walk a couple hundred meters. Turn right at the 7-11 and look for the red-and-black themed Ting Ting's just around the corner.
© Chris Backe - 2010This post was originally published on my blog, Chris in South Korea. If you are reading this on another website and there is no linkback or credit given, you are reading an UNAUTHORIZED FEED.
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