Excellence on the menu at Asia's 50 Best Restaurants ceremony in Seoul

Food & Travel

Published: 27 Mar. 2024, 15:29 Updated: 05 Apr. 2024, 16:16

Excellence on the menu at Asia's 50 Best Restaurants ceremony in Seoul

The winners of Asia's 50 Best Restaurants awards pose for photos after the ceremony at Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, on Tuesday. [ASIA'S 50 BEST RESTAURANTS]

The Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants awards ceremony in Seoul on Tuesday night was like one hot Instagram reel.

Seemingly everyone who is anyone in the food world was present, decked out in bow ties and flashy dresses, slurping Jjappaguri noodles from mini cups and munching on pieces of bugak (deep-fried seaweed) topped with uni, all the while mingling eagerly.

Some 800 industry leaders, experts and chefs reportedly gathered in the city for the event.

Certainly pleased with the scene was Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, who ended his opening speech with “please spend a lot of money around Seoul!"

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon visits food stands set up for the Asia's 50 Best Restaurants awards ceremony at Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, on Tuesday. [YONHAP]

This was the first time in the 11 years since Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants' founding that it has been hosted in Seoul. It has, however, been the gastro event's “long-awaited ambition” to come, according to its Director of Contents William Drew.

“We've been talking about coming to Korea for some time, since before the pandemic,” Drew told the Korea JoongAng Daily after the live unveiling Tuesday night at Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas in Gangnam District, southern Seoul. “Every time we go somewhere new, there is a sense of discovery and exploration. New food opens up the world. Seoul is showing the world its incredible food character. The world is discovering the huge spectrum of Korean cuisine and I think that is really exciting.”

A dish from Onjium in Jongno District, central Seoul [ASIA'S 50 BEST RESTAURANTS]

The newly announced Asia's 50 Best rankings saw Mingles as the best restaurant in Korea, placing No. 13 on the overall list. Three other Korean restaurants also claimed spots: 7th Door took No. 18, Onjium took No. 21 and Mosu placed No. 41. Mosu's owner-chef Sung Anh received the annual Chefs’ Choice Award in a vote by his peers.

Sézanne in Tokyo was named The Best Restaurant in Asia.

Chef Daniel Calvert, second from left, and his team at Sézanne in Tokyo, Japan were the winners of this year's Asia's 50 Best Restaurants. [ASIA'S 50 BEST RESTAURANTS]

Helmed by chef Daniel Calvert, Sézanne offers neo-French cuisine that showcases modern classics incorporating high-quality Japanese ingredients. Situated on the seventh floor of Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo in Marunouchi, the restaurant draws inspiration from the eponymous town in France's Champagne region. Sézanne debuted on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list at No. 17 in 2022 and climbed 15 spots to No. 2 last year.

A dish from Sezanne in Japan [ASIA'S 50 BEST RESTAURANTS]

Singapore claimed the most restaurants on the list with nine entries, led by Odette at No. 10.

Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list is a spinoff of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list. Launched in 2013, it aims to celebrate regional gastronomy and act as a gourmet guide for diners from around the globe. The annual list is selected via votes by a group of 318 restaurant industry leaders across Asia. This year’s list includes establishments from 19 cities across the region and eight new entries.

While four restaurants from Korea placed, there were no new entries and none made it up to the top 10.

“I think Korea has a bright future for food but in terms of dining at restaurants, we have to continue to push boundaries," Mosu's Anh told the press after the unveiling ceremony. "Character in food is important [...] Mosu, Onjium, 7th Door and Mingles all operate under the same genre of fine dining but our cooking is all very different."

A dish from 7th Door in Gangnam District, southern Seoul [ASIA'S 50 BEST RESTAURANTS]

One of the main limitations is many Koreans’ unwillingness to spend big on food.

“Korea had a belated start to this kind of dining culture compared to some of the other countries,” Anh said, “so it can be unfamiliar to more locals. I don’t think this is a matter of the level of our gastro culture. Koreans are in the process of learning that fine dining isn’t something that can just be enjoyed outside of Korea.”

Five more Korean restaurants made it onto the extended 51 to 100 selection of this year’s Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants released earlier this month: Contemporary dining Eatanic Garden ranks No. 62, beef omakase Born & Bred is No. 64, contemporary dining Solbam is No. 65, contemporary Korean dining Kwonsooksoo is No. 89 and innovative Mediterranean-inspired dining Alla Prima is No. 91.

Tuesday's ceremony was preceded by various events including the #50BestTalks, a thought-leadership forum titled “Food of the People”; the 50 Best Signature Sessions, a series of sold-out collaborative dining events that saw 50 Best chefs cooking alongside renowned local talent in Seoul; a Chefs’ Feast, showcasing the finest cooking and ingredients Korea is renowned for; and a Meet the Chefs media roundtable.