On the 13th, Michelin announced the “Michelin Guide Seoul 2023”, capturing the diverse culinary culture of the city. This 2023 edition includes a total of 176 restaurants, featuring 35 star restaurants and 57 Bib Gourmand restaurants.
This year, the guide showcases a newly added Michelin 3-star restaurant, a Michelin 2-star restaurant, and six Michelin 1-star restaurants, further illuminating the creativity and exceptional skills of chefs and restaurants in Korea.
Gwendal Poulleneck, International Director of the Michelin Guide, stated, “The culinary industry faced unprecedented challenges during the COVID-19 crisis, but chefs in Seoul turned the crisis into meaningful growth opportunities. As a result, inspiring new restaurants have emerged, and chefs have developed creatively new menus, illustrating tremendous growth in the culinary arts. With increasing global traveler interest in K-culture, Seoul is emerging as one of the hottest travel destinations.”
Chef Ahn Sung-jae possesses a unique talent for expressing the delicate nuances of ingredients. During the dining experience, each dish reflects original ideas and is constructed on a high level of completeness, offering a superb balance of flavors. The exceptional service that complements the beautiful cuisine remains among the best in Seoul. The consistent quality improvement of their meals instills deep trust.
In the restaurant Swaniye, under the slogan “Contemporary Cuisine of Seoul”, Chef Lee Joon and his team present creative dishes inspired by global cuisines. The dishes evolve into new expressions combined with the chefs’ ideas, described through a periodically changing menu referred to as “episodes”, where each unique theme unfolds like a poem with a beginning, middle, and end.
At Soul, where traces of modern-day Seoul linger in the liberated village, Chefs Yoon Dae-hyun and Kim Hee-eun challenge notions of fine dining with a sensory experience. Here, various culinary cultures and ingredients from contemporary Korea are expressed sensually, reflecting the chefs’ concerns for growth and their attempts at bold culinary innovations.
Chef Kang Min-cheol drew pride and inspiration from his time with master chefs. This inspiration has guided him in establishing the restaurant named after himself, where diners experience his culinary philosophy. The menu emphasizes the diversity of refined French cuisine while delivering dishes with ever-changing flavors.
Chef Seo Hyun-min presents dishes reflecting Korea’s beautiful four seasons, utilizing seasonal ingredients in collaboration with his team at Restaurant Allen. The unique plates he uses satisfy the visual element, beautifully complementing the delicate flavors of his dishes.
Chef Eom Tae-jun merges various experiences and expertise gained as a chef with Korean elements, evolving them into the cuisine at Solbam. His cooking notably respects nature, rooted in research and understanding of seasonal Korean ingredients and incorporates traditional Korean culinary techniques, resulting in modern dishes that reflect the chef’s culinary assets.
Itanic Garden is a space reminiscent of a beautiful city garden, awakening all five senses. While there is no fixed menu, guests can receive a creatively designed illustrative guide featuring key ingredients. Chef Son Jong-won, head chef of La Maison de la Nature, leads the kitchen here by creatively reimagining Korean cuisine and reflecting the aesthetics of fermentation.
Chef Kim Il-pan operates Restaurant Ilpan, where the art of cooking unfolds at temperatures between 130 and 180 degrees Celsius. This venue allows diners to experience the visual delight of the cooking process, as precise temperatures yield delightful flavors. By incorporating cooking techniques from Korean, Japanese, and Western cuisines, they present a varied menu.
The Michelin Guide also introduces restaurants that lead sustainable dining practices as Michelin Green Stars. Golden Bean Field, Flowers, and Bap Epidan have been awarded the Green Star for three consecutive years, while Gigass has been newly added this year. At Gigass, more than 95% of the vegetables used in the restaurant are directly grown on a farm operated by the chef’s father, with the remaining 5% sourced from organic businesses nationwide. The restaurant also utilizes renewable energy or sustainable resources for its various energy needs and is making strenuous efforts to achieve “zero food waste.”
This year, alongside the “Michelin Young Chef Award” and “Michelin Mentor Chef Award” established two years ago, the Michelin Guide Seoul has introduced the “Michelin Sommelier Award”.
Chef Kim Jun-hyung, born in 1993, learned craft under Chef Seo Seung-ho, a first-generation French chef in Korea, acquiring skills and operating know-how in small restaurants. He then fulfilled his dream of being an owner-chef by opening his own small restaurant. Chef Kim’s dishes, based on traditional French recipes, offer an experience where the natural flavors of the ingredients shine.
Chef Park Kyung-jae, raised in a small fishing village on the southern coast, has been exposed to a variety of seafood from a young age thanks to his father, a fisherman. He boasts over 30 years of experience as a sushi chef but continues to learn while rolling sushi, earning the respect of fellow chefs.
Sommelier Kim Jin-bum is instrumental in the rapid growth and development of Mooso. While Chef Ahn Sung-jae’s exceptional cuisine is the heart of Mooso, Sommelier Kim Jin-bum complements it with his exceptional beverage pairing skills, providing diners with a multi-dimensional and varied flavor experience.
All restaurants listed in the Michelin Guide Seoul 2023 are freely accessible via the Michelin Guide website and app, along with unique and enjoyable experiences offered by selected hotels.
Michelin Guide Seoul 2023 features unique styles and services, introducing hotels across budget ranges that can be booked directly on the Michelin Guide website and app.
Currently, the Seoul selection includes special hotels such as the pioneering design of “Hotel Cappuccino”, the “Plus” collection’s “Signiel Seoul”, the creatively stylish “Hotel Rise”, and the oasis resort in the city, “Banyan Tree Club & Spa”.
The Michelin Guide plans to set new standards not only for the culinary realm but also for hotels. Information on all Michelin Guide-selected restaurants and hotels can be found on the Michelin Guide website and app.
Lee Sang-jin daedusj@autodiary.kr