Around the hotels

Gala dinner by Michelin-starred chef at The PlazaThe Plaza will provide a gala dinner prepared by Italian chef Philippe Leveille, whose restaurant Miramonti L’altro in Italy received two Michelin stars for 13 years. French-born Leveille is known to add a French edge to his Italian dishes. Leveille will use luxury ingredients such as caviar, truffles and foie gras for the gala dinners on Nov. 26 and 28, accompanied by Albert Bichot wines. The first gala dinner will be held at 7 p.m. at the Maple

Nov. 21, 2014

Around the hotels

Top Chinese chef to present state banquet dishes at Lotte Hotel Seoul Jiang Bing Liang, the head chef of China’s Great Hall of the People, will be presenting Chinese state banquet dishes at Lotte Hotel Seoul’s Chinese restaurant Toh Lim. Jiang will collaborate with Toh Lim’s star chef Yeo Kyung-ok to provide lunch and dinner sets from Nov. 18-20. The lunch courses (138,000 won and 158,000 won) will include steamed shark’s fin with coconut, braised abalone with leek and oyster sauce, and hot nood

Nov. 14, 2014

Thanksgiving dinners and desserts in Seoul

Thanksgiving is less than two weeks away. For those who do not have the time to roast a turkey at home, here are several options for one to enjoy a Thanksgiving meal, complete with turkey, pumpkin pie and all the fixings. Dinner specialsLeft Coast Artisan BurgersOn Thanksgiving Day, Left Coast Artisan Burgers, a popular burger spot located in Seoul’s Itaewon-dong, will be hosting its second annual Thanksgiving Dinner Buffet. The buffet will feature turkey, ham, mushroom herb stuffing, mashed pot

Nov. 14, 2014

Baek kimchi (white kimchi)

Baek kimchi (white kimchi) (Korean Bapsang)Baek kimchi is a variety of kimchi that’s made without red chili pepper flakes. It is enjoyed for its mild, refreshing taste. Baek kimchi is child-friendly and great for people who have issues with spicy food!The stuffing for white kimchi varies but usually includes typical kimchi ingredients such as radish, garlic, ginger, scallion, minari, pear, etc. I like to add colorful bell peppers, which are called paprika in Korea, for sweetness and additional c

Nov. 14, 2014

Egg meets microwave for speedy rollup

So Dad was over for a visit and wanted scrambled eggs for breakfast. When I expressed some reluctance about pulling out a frying pan (OK, it was a whole lot of reluctance), he remained undeterred. “You don’t have to fry it,” he told me. “Use the microwave. Get me a saucer.”It took a crafty 92-year-old cook to show me how to exploit the microwave, which in my kitchen is better known as the popcorn maker and frozen-leftovers defroster. Within minutes, we were both enjoying a delectable scrambled e

Nov. 7, 2014

Pates and terrines at La Cave du Cochon

At La Cave du Cochon, L’Espoir du Hibou owner-chef Lim Ki-hak’s second act, the head cheese is formidable, reason enough to pull up a bar stool to the long wooden counter, pick up a fork and let each gelatinous, meaty morsel melt on your tongue. “I wanted to do this first,” La Cave du Cochon’s Lim, 36, said of the French head cheese known as fromage de tete. Bent on mastering fromage de tete as well as other pates, terrines and sausages, Lim studied charcuterie at the New York-based Internationa

Nov. 7, 2014

Around the hotels

Macau Food Festival at Conrad Seoul The buffet restaurant ZEST is presenting Macanese food from Nov. 7-16 with the Macau Government Tourist Office. The food promotion will offer Macanese dishes prepared by visiting chefs from Macau, who will also run egg-tart cooking classes on Nov. 10 and 15. The menu includes Portuguese suckling pig with orange, prawns with chili and Portuguese-style curry crab. Guests who upload photos of their food experience onto Instagram (instagram.com/conradseoul) will h

Nov. 7, 2014

[Weekender] Star chef sees jang as part of Koreans’ DNA

Jang, a range of sauces or pastes made from fermented soybeans, is an important part of what makes Korean food unique, a renowned Spanish chef told The Korea Herald. It could one day dominate the meal tables of Europeans, who are incrementally accepting fermented foods, said Quique Dacosta, a Michelin 3-star chef, during his interview with The Korea Herald last week. “There is something about jang. You can add it anywhere and make a great Korean dish. Koreans cannot live without it and it has be

Oct. 31, 2014

[Weekender] Food, retail giants compete for Korean taste

Korean food and retail giants are competing to open modern hansik restaurants as Korean cuisine gains popularity among health-conscious foodies. Armed with enough cash to make hefty investments, big names in the food and retail sectors, including Shinsegae, E-Land and CJ Group, have thrown their hats into the ring in recent years with restaurants combining style and mass-market appeal.These restaurants are all promoting the use of fresh ingredients.A front-runner in the hansik restaurant competi

Oct. 31, 2014

[Weekender] Korean firm supports globalization of fermented sauces

Korean food-maker Sempio has been supporting chefs in Spain in developing fermented Korean sauces, or “jang,” and dishes based on them as a way to penetrate the European market. The company teamed up with Alicia Foundation, led by chef Ferran Adria, in 2011 and developed 150 recipes marrying jang with modern Spanish cuisine. A “jang map” was developed, recommending different uses of jang according to the flavors cooks want to present.“We thought Spain was one of the most open culinary destinatio

Oct. 31, 2014

[Weekender] Restaurants seek to go high-end

At a glance, Korean restaurants may seem to be far from high-end. People often cram into hole-in-the-wall restaurants looking for wallet-friendly, everyday Korean meals. They are served a bowl of rice, soup and several side dishes all at once, for the whole table to share. In recent years, however, a growing number of Korean restaurants have been seeking to offer a slightly different experience.Among them is Poom Seoul, located on Mount Namsan, with floor-to-ceiling windows that allow diners to

Oct. 31, 2014

[Weekender] Modern Korean cuisine goes mainstream

Ha Jung-yun, 37, who enjoys exploring gourmet restaurants, has written more posts about Korean restaurants on her Facebook page over the past year. “It is fun to taste Korean fusion food, served at a newly opened restaurant with a modern look and at a reasonable price,’’ she said.Modern takes on Korean cuisine, better known as hansik, are a new trend in the restaurant scene here. “I like modern hansik because it is lighter and experimental, while using healthy and fresh ingredients,’’ Ha said.“T

Oct. 31, 2014

[Weekender] Celebrity chef eyes Korean-French fusion

For many Koreans, Leo Kang is a celebrity chef who gained overnight fame after appearing as a judge on food-focused cable channel Olive-TV’s culinary competition “Master Chef Korea.”His straight-talking style, exemplary career and eye-catching looks helped put him on the map. But what matters more for him than being a celebrity is finding the true colors of his foods. “I have tried to present the dishes that I imitated from world-famous chefs, but now I want my dishes to show my own colors,” Kan

Oct. 31, 2014

[Weekender] Bibimbap: Perfection in a bowl

Bibimbap, essentially rice mixed with meat and vegetables, often tops surveys on Korea’s signature dishes. It has been popular as a health food both domestically and overseas for quite some time.But the basic recipe of cooked rice with vegetables, beef, garnishes and red pepper paste is not all there is to it. In fact, bibimbap can be a whole lot more, according to “World’s Choice for Well-Being, Bibimbap,” a book that introduces 75 takes on the dish, written by Jhun Ji-young and published by Le

Oct. 31, 2014

Around the hotels

Thanksgiving roast Turkey at The Westin Chosun Seoul Vecchia e Nuovo, the Westin Chosun Seoul’s Italian Bistro, offers the whole roasted turkey and Australian prime rib prepared with peppercorn sauce for Thanksgiving and year-end parties from Nov. 10 to Dec. 31. The essential Thanksgiving side dishes such as mashed potatoes, gravy and cranberry sauce will be offered with roast turkey with chestnut stuffing. Reservations should be made at least three days in advance. Delivery is available during

Oct. 31, 2014

Bill Granger’s famous eats in Seoul

Australian celebrity chef Bill Granger’s famous eggs have arrived in Seoul. Praised time and time again by the press, Granger’s scrambled eggs are one of the star items on the menu at his global, multioutlet eatery Bills, which first opened in Sydney over 20 years ago and launched its first Korean branch on Oct. 17. Though less than two weeks have passed since Bills opened in Lotte World Mall, word has spread fast. Tables are buzzing with diners digging into stacks of towering, impossibly thick

Oct. 31, 2014

Sesame Broccoli

Broccoli is one of those vegetables you either love or hate, but we all know it’s incredibly healthy. Sesame broccoli is a family favorite. Blanch (or steam) the broccoli, and dress it with generous amounts of sesame oil and sesame seeds. There you have it -― a quick side dish that’s nutty, crunchy and delicious! Eat your broccoli!Ingredients:● 450 grams broccoli● 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, roasted and crushed*● 1 tablespoon sesame oil● 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic● Salt to taste (about 1/2 teaspo

Oct. 31, 2014

5 Most Innovative Korean Restaurants in NYC

NEW YORK -- The demand and enthusiasm for Korean food in New York City have been recently growing steadily among New York foodies. Kimchi, the quintessential Korean side dish, pickled and spiced cabbage, is now being sold in common bodegas as well as at larger supermarkets such as Whole Foods Market and Trader Joe’s. One of the reasons for Korean food’s success is contributed to its appeal to both vegetarians and meat-lovers alike -- with the healthier, vegetarian dishes and with famous barbecue

Oct. 27, 2014

Serving up Korean food with a sexy twist

It is clich to say that life takes interesting turns, but for celebrity chef Judy Joo, that may very well be the best way to describe the path that life has taken her.The Korean-American who now lives in London began her career on the fix income-trading floor at Morgan Stanley upon graduating Columbia University with an engineering degree. She enjoyed her success but her heart was not in it. It was the fine dining that she was introduced to as a high-earning Wall Street trader that kept tugging

Oct. 24, 2014

Stuffed popovers and blue velvet cake at Melting Shop

Expect the unexpected at Melting Shop, a brand-new restaurant helmed by the duo who created the restaurants Tastingroom and Miki Creole. Situated in Seoul’s Sinsa-dong near Dosan Park, Melting Shop held its soft opening on Oct. 15 and is slated to hold its grand opening on Nov. 1.At the new establishment, popovers, flatbread and cake are remixed into fresh, fun eats that are as tasty as they are unconventional. “We decided to do something completely new,” said Melting Shop director Kim Ju-young,

Oct. 24, 2014