When Americans (or Westerners in general) go out to dinner it usually consists of a huge personal plate of one type of food. Maybe you’ll throw in a side of potatoes in some variety, but for the most part – you’re eating one thing for your meal – like spaghetti. In Korea, meals are focused on one item, but you almost always have “banchan” which are small coaster sized dishes filled with little bites to try. The dishes included in banchan range from kimchi, to bean sprout salads, all the way to pickled squid.