Michelin Seoul celebrates global perspectives: Five new restaurants given one star, while two climb in rankings
The French restaurant guide released its third edition Thursday and announced a list of chefs who were awarded stars at the Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas in Samseong-dong, southern Seoul. There were no additions to the list of local restaurants with three Michelin stars, but some newcomers were recognized elsewhere. Five restaurants were given two stars and 19 received one star.
Five restaurants earned one star for the first time, including Mosu in Yongsan District, central Seoul, Muoki in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, Lee Jong Kuk 104 in Seongbuk District, northern Seoul, Hansikgonggan in Jongno District, central Seoul, and Stay at Signiel Seoul hotel in Gangnam District, southern Seoul.
Chefs Ahn Sung-jae of Mosu and James Park (also known as Park Moo-hyun) of Muoki both bring experience from overseas to Korea, and have each run their respective restaurants for about a year. Ahn used to run a restaurant of the same name in San Francisco, where he earned one Michelin star before moving back to Korea. Park worked at The Test Kitchen in South Africa, where he became the No. 2 chef in the kitchen after having started out at the bottom of about 20 chefs.
“It was nerve-racking for me to be recognized in a new city,” said Ahn. “There are many stereotypes [that people] simply follow so it’s not easy to introduce something new, but I will continue to try and bring in different cultures better [on the plate].”
While the French guide welcomes global influence, it also honored the work of some Korean food masters who are dedicated to making traditional Korean food more appealing to younger generations in Korea as well as foreign visitors. Alongside chef Lee Jong-kuk of Lee Jong Kuk 104, chef Cho Hee-suk of Hansikgonggan, who teaches classes from time to time for working chefs in Korea, was honored with a star for her contributions to Korean culinary tradition.
Stay, a casual brand set up by three-Michelin-starred French chef Yannick Alleno, at Signiel Seoul hotel, also got one star for bringing French expertise to the local market. The staff, led by executive chef Thierry Le Queau, said that they make adaptations with local ingredients while using all the French techniques they are used to in order to make what they serve more diverse.
While Korean restaurants Jungsik and Kwon Sook Soo, and Japanese sushi restaurant Kojima held onto their two stars, Mingles and Alla Prima each gained an additional star and have been added to the two-star list. Mingles, which was ranked No. 11 on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurant List run by William Reed, a media company that reviews restaurants around the world, has done a number of collaboration dinner events with internationally renowned chefs including chef Pascal Barbot of Paris restaurant L’Astrance. Chef Kang Min-goo of Mingles also traveled to Salzburg, Austria, to cook at restaurant Ikarus earlier this year.
“The word ‘fusion’ hasn’t been so warmly welcomed in Korea’s food world recently, so I tried to use my own subtle and detailed way to match different ingredients [that are rarely used outside of Japanese cuisine] to bring out something comfortable yet different,” said Kim.
Restaurant Gaon in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, and La Yeon at Hotel Shilla Seoul in Jung District, central Seoul, each maintained their three-star ratings.
“With the continuing rise of affordable air travel, diners have never had a better opportunity to taste dishes from anywhere their heart desires,” said Gwendal Poullennec, international director of The Michelin Guide, introducing Seoul as a rising food destination. “Gastronomy is a key resource in the value offer and differentiation of destinations and it is a very effective way to make destinations more attractive to visitors.”
While many chefs are congratulating each other for being honored, some are raising questions on the credibility of the guide. Chef Eo Yun-gwon of Ristorante Eo, whose restaurant had one star for the past two years, took to social media before the announcement of this year’s guide that he learned that he had lost his star and then raised questions whether the guide reviews restaurants fairly. After the release of the guide on Thursday, he posted on Facebook that he wants to do a cooking battle with other Michelin-starred chefs and asked local media to join and cover the event and review which chefs’ dishes are better.
“I’m asking The Michelin Guide, which was my goal for over 20 years as a chef, politely,” said Eo. “If there’s no reply, I will take this as Michelin admitting it’s corrupt.”
The Korea JoongAng Daily reached out to the chef, but the chef declined to make further comments.
BY LEE SUN-MIN [summerlee@joongang.co.kr]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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