After the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2025 live awards ceremony held in Seoul this week, we caught up with a couple of top Korean chefs and a restaurant manager to find out about their go-to BBQ joints and favourite Korean ingredients they can’t live without.
Text by: Jocelyn Tan
Chef Sungbae Park of Onjium (Seoul, Jongno District, Hyoja-ro, 49 4층, No. 10 Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants): Where tradition meets innovation, this cultural institute-turned-restaurant offers a refined, research-driven take on traditional Korean royal court cuisine.
Best spot in Seoul for Korean BBQ: Golden Pig/ Geumdwaeji Sikdang (금돼지 식당).
One Korean dish you’d recommend a foreigner to try and where to have it: If you go to Gyeongdong market (located in Dongdaemun District), there’s a noodle shop called Andong Guksi that I really like.
Favourite late-night food fix in Korea: Korean pork belly barbecue!
A Korean ingredient you can’t live without: Deodeok (더덕) (a mountain root vegetable) and pine nuts.
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Head Chef Jeongwon Son of Eatanic Garden (Josun Palace, 231, Teheran-ro, Gangnam District, No. 25 Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants): Chef Son Jong Won’s elegantly plated tasting menu channels nature and Korean heritage, offering a botanical, haute-cuisine interpretation of hansik.
Best spot in Seoul for Korean BBQ: Golden Pig (금돼지 식당). There’s a reason why it’s everyone’s favourite!
One Korean dish you’d recommend a foreigner to try and where to have it: My favourite dish is cold noodles (냉면). I like the Pyeongyang-style cold noodles and there’s so many places I enjoy heading to, depending on the mood. Today I’m thinking… Woo Lae Uk.
Favourite late-night food fix in Korea: A bowl of soup — blood sausage soup is always good, and there’s a place in front of Josun Palace (where Eatanic Garden is located) and I love going there.
A Korean ingredient you can’t live without: Greens (나물). All the greens of Korea.
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Restaurant Manager Chae Young of 7th Door (Hakdong-ro 97-gil, 41 4층, Gangnam District, No. 23 Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants): Chef Kim Dae-chun delves deep into fermentation and aging, presenting contemporary Korean cuisine through a meticulous, technique-driven lens.
Best spot in Seoul for Korean BBQ: Jumok Gogi 주목고기 in Gangnam.
One Korean dish you’d recommend a foreigner to try: Gopchang! I don’t have one recommended place, but I like to have gopchang in a neighbourhood called Wangsimni in Seoul.
Favourite late-night food fix in Korea: Kimchi jjigae is something that’s good anytime.
A Korean ingredient you can’t live without: Gochugaru (spicy red pepper flakes) and garlic.