| Chow in Korea Email Chat III, on Friday, March 16, 2007 |
| GRENEDA POSTAGE STAMP ON KOREA |
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 00:23:56 +0000
Dad, Could you please remove me from the mailing list? The only reason I ask is
because many of your friends are hitting "reply all" and my inbox is filling up with
replies from many people that I don't know regarding things I don't know about
either. It's cluttering my inbox. Thanks. Love you and Mom!!--Marc
Fri, 16 Mar 2007 01:45:14 EDT
Ham and lima beans was the best ever. I always had plenty because everyone
else couldn't stand the taste and would trade for most anything. Cold ham and
beans were good but warm ham and beans were better than mess hall chow. No
accounting for taste.--Aves, 2/7 1st Cav 1965, 3/23 2ID 1965-66 Camp MacKenzie
Fri, 16 Mar 2007 10:03:34 -0700 (PDT)
I also liked the beef meal and the peaches in the c-rations. I still have an
unopened case of c-rations with the band on it, which I bought in the commissary
at Ft. Benning in 1984. By that time, they no longer had the cigarettes in them,
although the C's we had at Fort Dix in 1975 still had them.
When I was stationed at Fort Bragg in the early 90's, I worked in an office with a
bunch of guys who had served in Korea. We used to go to an all you can eat
Asian buffet in Spring Lake for lunch once in a while, chow down on kimchi, then
go back to the office which was in the basement of the Corps HQ. The ventilation
wasn't all that good down there and when people would stop by, they always
knew where we ate lunch because the place reeked of kimchi.
Another thing about that kimchi was that it had to be stored in its own
refrigerator in the mess hall. I had to remind my mess sergeant in Korea about that
several times, because I could always tell when the cooks forgot and put the butter
in the same refrigerator with the kimchi. The butter would just absorb that kimchi
smell and taste.--Mike Davino
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 10:10:51 AM
I felt the same way about canned ham and eggs. I liked them best. I still drink
coffee with sugar and chocolate powder. I miss those days. Can any of you tell
me where to get some C-4 so I can cook my C-rations? Do you remember cooking
out of the cans in which the food comes…just cut the top partially open and use
the bent back top for a handle, being careful not to burn our fingers on the open
flame. As the song said: “Those were the days, my friend. We thought they’d
never end.” Since I mentioned that song, every time I hear it on the radio, I am
reminded of the North Korean choir music on the loud speakers…there’s a part at
the end of the song which jerks me back to the DMZ every time I hear it.--Sgt.
Benbow
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 10:11 AM
Dave, You had your food delivered? That's class, LOL. We had to walk from RC4
to Pelham to eat. That meant going through Sonyu-Ri. So there was no guarantee
the enlisted men ever made it to Pelham, lol.--Ken
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 10:11 AM
As Rachel Ray would say: “Yum-O”.--Sgt Benbow
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 10:21 AM
The James Brown show was sensational! I had a front row seat and it was just
spectacular. Was even lucky enough to meet him later that day after the shows
were over.
At Fort Ord I actually 'buddied' around with Gary Lewis (Gary Lewis and The
Playboys) and got to meet his dad Jerry Lewis (a really special man) after his
graduation ceremony. He was in a...can't remember what it was called...some kind
of special entertainment outfit or something. A high school friend of mine was also
in that unit and that's how we got to running around together. Oh, but the
memories that come back!--Ken
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 11:29:46 -0500
I never met James Brown, nor his Fabulous Flames…but I did stay at a Holiday
Inn Express last night.--David Benbow
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 16:45:32 -0500
I've suddenly been receiving lots of emails about how good the food was in
Korea. Either I was born under a bad sign or 63-64 was a bad year because the
food SUCKED HUGELY!—George Gustavson
Friday , March 16, 2007 17:26:35 -0500
From The Desk of Ronnie Hebert
Hi, I have been enjoying the comments about the food in Korea. Thanks guys. It
has refreshed my memory and it has given me another reason to smile. Here are
some of my comments: I was OK with the chow at the mess hall. I could eat
everything that was prepared, and I liked most of it. My very favorite Army mess
hall meal was the Thanksgiving meal in Korea. Well, for some unknown reason,
we had some personnel bring guests to lunch, and there were decorations, too. I
really don't know why Thanksgiving was special in Korea, but it was a
welcomed and a special treat to see the meager decorations. The Korean guests
were mostly young ladies and some young children, and the food that day was
especially good. A turkey dinner with all the dressings. Ummm.
Being a southern boy I had a time with S.O.S. Once I was able to get pass
looking at white gravy I was ok. It had been brown gravy all my life. Now, white
gravy is a favorite when I go to a "Shony's" restaurant for breakfast.
When we lived in the tent city for 4 months it was an outside mess. It looked like
the set of "MASH". We lived in a tent, and we ate in a tent. We did our own dishes
in a line of metal trash cans outside of the tent. One for dumping trash and one for
garbage, one for washing and one with boiling water for sanitizing.
And, for C-Rations, my favorite was beans & franks, but it seems I had an
advantage. You see, I was a licensed Army driver with an 11H10 MOS when I went
to Korea. I was assigned to Recon platoon 2/31 7th Div. They were on the zone
and in need of a driver. After the zone I was still a driver for the rest of my tour in
Korea. I drove our recon platoon lieutenant for several months, I drove our
battalion XO for a couple of months, and I drove our Battalion E-8 in charge of
personnel while he was left in charge of our base camp at Casey. Well, I drove
military vehicles that had "flat" head engines. So, anytime I wanted a hot meal, all I
had to do was pull over, and pull out a C-Ration can, open and place it on that hot
flat head engine for about 5-10 minutes. I had my very own microwave. Ha
ha.
Even in the snow, I had hot food. I guess I was luckier than most in that respect.
But, the best meal I ever had in Korea was while driving for the Personnel
sergeant. We had delivered a couple of GI's who were headed home, to Kimpo Air
Base. Afterwards, we dropped in at a Mess Hall to eat a meal before returning to
Casey. To this day I don't remember what I ate, but I do remember quiet well
thinking at that time how good the food tasted and that this was by far the best
meal that I had ever eaten while in Korea. Air Force mess hall food, can you
believe it???
But, I too have nothing but praise for our Army cooks. Even though I was blown
away by one Air Force mess hall meal, it was the Army cooks who fed me. It is to
them I owe my thanks and admiration for all of their dedicated and skillful hours of
working in preparing food for me and my friends in the United States Army.
HooRaaa!!! Thanks guys.
Remember, "Don't mess with the cooks or the medics". --Recon Ron, Go Army.
Korea 68-69 DMZ 2/31- 7th Inf Div, Hq Co "RECON"
Dad, Could you please remove me from the mailing list? The only reason I ask is
because many of your friends are hitting "reply all" and my inbox is filling up with
replies from many people that I don't know regarding things I don't know about
either. It's cluttering my inbox. Thanks. Love you and Mom!!--Marc
Fri, 16 Mar 2007 01:45:14 EDT
Ham and lima beans was the best ever. I always had plenty because everyone
else couldn't stand the taste and would trade for most anything. Cold ham and
beans were good but warm ham and beans were better than mess hall chow. No
accounting for taste.--Aves, 2/7 1st Cav 1965, 3/23 2ID 1965-66 Camp MacKenzie
Fri, 16 Mar 2007 10:03:34 -0700 (PDT)
I also liked the beef meal and the peaches in the c-rations. I still have an
unopened case of c-rations with the band on it, which I bought in the commissary
at Ft. Benning in 1984. By that time, they no longer had the cigarettes in them,
although the C's we had at Fort Dix in 1975 still had them.
When I was stationed at Fort Bragg in the early 90's, I worked in an office with a
bunch of guys who had served in Korea. We used to go to an all you can eat
Asian buffet in Spring Lake for lunch once in a while, chow down on kimchi, then
go back to the office which was in the basement of the Corps HQ. The ventilation
wasn't all that good down there and when people would stop by, they always
knew where we ate lunch because the place reeked of kimchi.
Another thing about that kimchi was that it had to be stored in its own
refrigerator in the mess hall. I had to remind my mess sergeant in Korea about that
several times, because I could always tell when the cooks forgot and put the butter
in the same refrigerator with the kimchi. The butter would just absorb that kimchi
smell and taste.--Mike Davino
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 10:10:51 AM
I felt the same way about canned ham and eggs. I liked them best. I still drink
coffee with sugar and chocolate powder. I miss those days. Can any of you tell
me where to get some C-4 so I can cook my C-rations? Do you remember cooking
out of the cans in which the food comes…just cut the top partially open and use
the bent back top for a handle, being careful not to burn our fingers on the open
flame. As the song said: “Those were the days, my friend. We thought they’d
never end.” Since I mentioned that song, every time I hear it on the radio, I am
reminded of the North Korean choir music on the loud speakers…there’s a part at
the end of the song which jerks me back to the DMZ every time I hear it.--Sgt.
Benbow
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 10:11 AM
Dave, You had your food delivered? That's class, LOL. We had to walk from RC4
to Pelham to eat. That meant going through Sonyu-Ri. So there was no guarantee
the enlisted men ever made it to Pelham, lol.--Ken
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 10:11 AM
As Rachel Ray would say: “Yum-O”.--Sgt Benbow
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 10:21 AM
The James Brown show was sensational! I had a front row seat and it was just
spectacular. Was even lucky enough to meet him later that day after the shows
were over.
At Fort Ord I actually 'buddied' around with Gary Lewis (Gary Lewis and The
Playboys) and got to meet his dad Jerry Lewis (a really special man) after his
graduation ceremony. He was in a...can't remember what it was called...some kind
of special entertainment outfit or something. A high school friend of mine was also
in that unit and that's how we got to running around together. Oh, but the
memories that come back!--Ken
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 11:29:46 -0500
I never met James Brown, nor his Fabulous Flames…but I did stay at a Holiday
Inn Express last night.--David Benbow
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 16:45:32 -0500
I've suddenly been receiving lots of emails about how good the food was in
Korea. Either I was born under a bad sign or 63-64 was a bad year because the
food SUCKED HUGELY!—George Gustavson
Friday , March 16, 2007 17:26:35 -0500
From The Desk of Ronnie Hebert
Hi, I have been enjoying the comments about the food in Korea. Thanks guys. It
has refreshed my memory and it has given me another reason to smile. Here are
some of my comments: I was OK with the chow at the mess hall. I could eat
everything that was prepared, and I liked most of it. My very favorite Army mess
hall meal was the Thanksgiving meal in Korea. Well, for some unknown reason,
we had some personnel bring guests to lunch, and there were decorations, too. I
really don't know why Thanksgiving was special in Korea, but it was a
welcomed and a special treat to see the meager decorations. The Korean guests
were mostly young ladies and some young children, and the food that day was
especially good. A turkey dinner with all the dressings. Ummm.
Being a southern boy I had a time with S.O.S. Once I was able to get pass
looking at white gravy I was ok. It had been brown gravy all my life. Now, white
gravy is a favorite when I go to a "Shony's" restaurant for breakfast.
When we lived in the tent city for 4 months it was an outside mess. It looked like
the set of "MASH". We lived in a tent, and we ate in a tent. We did our own dishes
in a line of metal trash cans outside of the tent. One for dumping trash and one for
garbage, one for washing and one with boiling water for sanitizing.
And, for C-Rations, my favorite was beans & franks, but it seems I had an
advantage. You see, I was a licensed Army driver with an 11H10 MOS when I went
to Korea. I was assigned to Recon platoon 2/31 7th Div. They were on the zone
and in need of a driver. After the zone I was still a driver for the rest of my tour in
Korea. I drove our recon platoon lieutenant for several months, I drove our
battalion XO for a couple of months, and I drove our Battalion E-8 in charge of
personnel while he was left in charge of our base camp at Casey. Well, I drove
military vehicles that had "flat" head engines. So, anytime I wanted a hot meal, all I
had to do was pull over, and pull out a C-Ration can, open and place it on that hot
flat head engine for about 5-10 minutes. I had my very own microwave. Ha
ha.
Even in the snow, I had hot food. I guess I was luckier than most in that respect.
But, the best meal I ever had in Korea was while driving for the Personnel
sergeant. We had delivered a couple of GI's who were headed home, to Kimpo Air
Base. Afterwards, we dropped in at a Mess Hall to eat a meal before returning to
Casey. To this day I don't remember what I ate, but I do remember quiet well
thinking at that time how good the food tasted and that this was by far the best
meal that I had ever eaten while in Korea. Air Force mess hall food, can you
believe it???
But, I too have nothing but praise for our Army cooks. Even though I was blown
away by one Air Force mess hall meal, it was the Army cooks who fed me. It is to
them I owe my thanks and admiration for all of their dedicated and skillful hours of
working in preparing food for me and my friends in the United States Army.
HooRaaa!!! Thanks guys.
Remember, "Don't mess with the cooks or the medics". --Recon Ron, Go Army.
Korea 68-69 DMZ 2/31- 7th Inf Div, Hq Co "RECON"
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