Kim Rahn is the managing editor of The Korea Times. Since joining the company in 2003, she has covered various beats including the presidential office, Seoul city government, the Bank of Korea and the tourism industry. In 2014, she won the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) award for her coverage of the ordeals of migrant women in Korea.
World cuisine introduced in chef promotions
By Kim Rahn
By Kim Rahn
As fall arrives, many of Seoul’s top hotels are presenting various food promotions to celebrate the new season.
Hotels invite chefs from top-class restaurants around the world to satisfy guests’ palates with the finest food ingredients.
The Grand Hyatt Seoul will have Michelin-star chef Stefano Baiocco from Villa Feltrinelli in Italy to showcase his contemporary interpretations of authentic Italian cuisine.
From Oct. 26 to Nov. 1 at The Paris Grill, the Italian will present some of his top creations from the many venues he has worked at, including Yokohama, New York, Hong Kong, Oxford, Spain and Italy.
His herb-based dishes include chilled soup with 10 different spices, and fresh and candied fruits and vegetables with herbs. His main courses include a premium selection of pastas with a signature entree, such as sea bass filet amatriciana, grilled wagyu beef with spinach and eggplant ravioli, and homemade tortellini filled with carbonara sauce and broccoli cream scented with anchovies.
A variety of appetizers and desserts are also available.
The promotion is available between 6 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. The set menu price starts at 85,000 won, and a la carte selections from 17,000 won. For more information or reservations, call 02-799-8161 or visit www.seoul.grand.hyatt.com.
For a journey to Indian culinary excellence, Millennium Seoul Hilton’s Indian cuisine promotion is an option.
The hotel’s international buffet, Orangerie, will feature tantalizing India-inspired dining extravaganza to spice up its popular buffet during October.
Chef Sanjay Tyagi from the famous Umerkot Indian Fine Dining Restaurant in Bangalore will present his culinary talent and expertise at the restaurant during the promotion.
A variety of hot and cold dishes featuring the exotic flavors of India are available, along with desserts.
“Indian cuisine is as diverse as the country’s culture, geography and climate and is distinguished by its sophisticated use of herbs and spices. The essence of good Indian cooking lies on the appropriate use of aromatic Indian spices and the skill of subtly blending these spices to enhance, not overwhelm, the basic flavors of the dish,” a hotel official said.
The lunch buffet is priced at 55,000 won for adults and 33,000 won for children under 12. Dinner is available at 60,000 won for adults and 36,000 won for children. For reservations or inquiries, call 02-317-3143.
Mushrooms are one of Korea’s famous autumn delicacies.
The Plaza Hotel’s Japanese restaurant Murasaki presents the Pine Mushroom Special Kaiseki promotion, comprising of 10 dishes created by chef Minamihama Yoshikazu from Nanji Yamatoya, a kaiseki restaurant with 130 years of history. Kaiseki is a traditional multi-course Japanese dinner.
Chef Yoshikazu’s dishes will provide a taste of traditional Kyoto kaiseki, which is known to use seasonal ingredients. They include a clear soup containing pine mushroom and spotty belly greenling, pine mushrooms and prawns with pickled mackerel, and a rice pot cooked with pine mushroom.
The set menu is priced at 200,000 won. Also, various a la carte dishes using autumn ingredients are offered at reasonable prices. The promotion is available through the end of October. For more information, call 02-310-7100.
At the Grand Hilton Seoul, classic Korean dishes are offered by the hotel’s chefs who received awards in a cooking contest.
Throughout October, the hotel’s Buffet Restaurant is holding a Fall Pork Special promotion featuring an award-winning selection of traditional Korean pork dishes. The chef team won the grand prize from the agriculture ministry in the Paju Gaeseong Ginseng Cooking Contest.
They will offer a combination of pork with traditional ingredients such as ginseng, kimchi and herbs. The dishes include grilled pork belly flavored with ginseng and rice wine, pork belly with kimchi, and oriental herb pork hocks. The ginseng and rice wine-flavored pork belly is the dish which won the award.
All diners who leave a message on the taste of their meal will receive a raffle ticket with a chance to win a bottle of Chilean Yali Premium Reserve wine. For more information, call 02-2287-8271.
At Novotel Ambassador Gangnam, chief chef Jerard Mosiniak showcases an Autumn Palate promotion at the European restaurant The Bistro.
The Michelin star chef has created his own recipes of low calorie, highly nutritious dishes with which he himself lost 10 kilograms. The promotion menu also reflects Mosiniak’s consideration of health and diet.
For starter, guests can choose between Polynesia-style white tuna or duck foie gras and smoked magret log. The appetizer is vol au vent of black mushroom, black pork belly and slow poached egg, while the main course is a choice between sea bass a la plancha with Mediterranean flavors, and beef filet and braised beef cheek in wonton. An iced souffle flavored with Grand Marnier is served as dessert, along with tea or coffee.
The promotion is available through the end of the year for 68,000 won. For more information, call 02-531-6604.