Michelin Announces 2020 Stars for Seoul

November 18, 2019 Admin 0 Comments

Tasting-menu restaurants Mosu and L’Impression get two stars for the first time

Last week, French tire purveyor Michelin debuted its fourth guide to Seoul. In 2020, the South Korean capital has two new two-star restaurants and seven new one-star restaurants, for a total of 31 starred restaurants.

Chef Sung Anh’s tasting-menu restaurant Mosu was bumped up to two-star status. It earned its first star in Seoul in 2019, after moving from San Francisco (where it also had one star). Meanwhile, L’Impression appears on Michelin’s list for the first time with two stars. The restaurant’s chef Allen Suh spent 17 years working in Michelin-starred restaurants in the states before opening the Korean tasting-menu venue, Michelin notes.

The one-star category grows by seven restaurants in the 2020 guide, including three French restaurants Auprès, Pierre Gagnaire, and Votre Maison. Just one of the newly starred restaurants is helmed by a female chef: Onjium led by chef Cho Eun-hee is both a restaurant and an institute for research on traditional Korean culture. According to Michelin, Cho Eun-hee becomes one of three women with Michelin stars in Seoul, joining Noh Yeong-hee of Poom and Cho Hee-sook of Hansikgonggan, both with one star. (Michelin is frequently criticized for failing to represent female chefs in its international guides.)

There were no new three-star restaurants this year, but Seoul’s three-star restaurants — Ga On and Eater essential La Yeon — maintain that status for the fourth year running. Check out the full list of Seoul’s Michelin stars, as well as 60 Bib Gourmand selections (restaurants at more affordable price points), at the link.

• MICHELIN Guide Seoul 2020 Selection [Michelin]