A pinch of scandal with a dash of Shin
A plate of snails a la Parisienne and pan-fried scallops. Photo by Ko Juran
According to the maitre d’ at The Restaurant the fraudulent art curator and alleged lover of ex-presidential policy adviser Byeon Yang-kyoon was a frequent visitor. “She came here many times,” said the maitre d’, who declined to give his name. “I don’t know if she came with Byeon, she was always with a different man.”
This news is not surprising. Shin seems to have been fond of power and the powerful, if her list of associates/witnesses is any guide, and this is a power restaurant par excellence with food and prices to match.
Located in the Kukje Gallery building in Samcheong-dong, this eatery is a short stroll from the Blue House. During the week it is full of politicians and senior executives from the jaebeols.
“Businessmen come here because we are very discrete,” said the maitre d’. “This is a place where they can feel comfortable because are separated from the common people.”
He’s not kidding. The prices at The Restaurant guarantee that hoi polloi never get close to the establishment’s coveted tables.
Once seated on the third floor of the Kukje’s post-modern edifice the air of privilege settles on one’s spirit and, for those of modest means, has a detumescent effect on the wallet.
A restaurant with more interest in mass appeal would have three times as many tables. Instead The Restaurant’s tables, with their starched white table cloths, are spread out in a minimalist room like isolated islands in a spacious sea ― no doubt to facilitate secretive conversations between the high and mighty.
This feature has also made The Restaurant a popular spot for the sons and daughters of jaebeol panjandrums, who are often dispatched here on blind dates by matchmakers, who probably regard the chic spot’s prices as an essential part of their male client’s credit check.
One such couple was seated close to our table. Despite the distance between us their conversation was all too audible. She was trim, with dyed hair and a good family.
I knew this last fact because she broadcast her opinion of her lineage in ringing tones whenever the conversation between her and her prey ― I mean date ― began to flag.
On the advice of the maitre d’ we chose the prix-fixe A-menu for 55,000 won ($61) per person.
It consisted of two appetizers and one main course, followed by desert and coffee. Actually, this decision was easy. Appetizers are often the best bit of a restaurant’s menu and it was a pleasure to order two and feel thrifty, the prix fixe prices representing a 30 percent discount over the a la carte.
A trio of complimentary amuse bouches arrived first, but my mouth found nothing amusing about them. There’s no point dispensing free food if the little chunks of beef and some unidentified fish taste like stale Marmite and dishwater respectively.
My mouth was far more amused by the jaebeol couple. They were now getting down to business. “What I really hope for is a house with lots of trees,” said the girl. “Close to a big department store.”
As her date, a dentist by all accounts, chewed over this revelation with what looked like a hint of fear I began work on pan-fried scallops served on a smear of mashed potato and a drizzle of olive oil seasoned with basil. Not bad. Better still were the escargot cooked a la Parisienne ― delicate nuggets of minced snail cooked with garlic in the juice of mushrooms and served on said, again with some drizzles of basil-infused olive oil.
Eaten with a Donnafugata red from Sicily by Angheli for 57,000 won, this was the perfect autumnal dish. The wine drew out the earthy taste of the snail and garlic, which was a good preparation for the sauteed foie gras that followed. Like an opera singer, a chef needs to build the drama to a climax and the goose liver combined with delicate pastry was an impressive aria that made me feel The Restaurant’s chef could have some impressive notes to follow.
The final appetizer was Jamon Iberico served with morsels of anchovy, grapefruit and Romaine lettuce. The combination of anchovy and ham was, in this case, superb.
We paused between courses and the maitre d’ returned to entertain us with more stories about Shin Jeong-ah and her paramours.
His tales of her endless scheming made me feel slightly sorry for her. If she goes to jail, as seems likely, I wonder if she will remember her hours spent in The Restaurant with fondness or self-loathing.
I think it all depends on whether she had the lamb or the steak as her main course.
We tried both. If Shin had the lamb her memories of this eatery are bound to be fond ones. Stripped from the bones, which are thoughtfully left on the plate for further sucking, the delicate pieces of lamb were perfectly cooked and were a good match for the blue cheese sauce. The latter can so easily overpower a delicate meat and I order it with caution, but in this case the chef pulled off the trick.
However, if Shin was a beef girl I think The Restaurant might haunt her jailhouse dreams. The meat itself was a perfect piece of hanwoo, the best grade of Korean beef. But, like Shin herself, it had been placed in an awkward situation, being drenched in a sauce that seemed to have sneaked into the main courses, when its proper place was among the deserts.
The maitre d’ told me, with misplaced pride, that the sauce was a demi-glace made with 12-year-old port. Unfortunately the sauce was more demi-glaze than demi-glace and drowned the beef in sweetness.
The desert that followed represented a descent from Pavarotti to street-busker. The subtle notes of the appetizers were nowhere to be found in these random confections that tasted like they had come from Paris Baguette. They were so cloying that, with the steak still clogging my tatstebuds, I was forced to order a plate of cheese to clean my palate.
As we left the ghost of Shin’s past seemed to hover over the room.
In her professional life she was highly accomplished in some respects and deeply flawed in others. That’s an apt description for the kitchen at The Restaurant.
The Restaurant
English: Spoken erratically
Tel: (02) 735-8441
Address: Kukje Gallery, 59-1 Sogyeok-dong, Jung-gu
Subway: Anguk
Parking: Valet
Hours: 12:00 to 3:00 p.m and 6:00 to 10:00 p.m., 7 days
Dress: Shin-chic
By Daniel Jeffreys Features Editor [danielj@joongang.co.kr]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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