Park Hyatt Seoul's new chef tucks into Korean cuisine

Park Hyatt Seoul’s Executive Chef Federico Heinzmann with Ven. Sunjae /Courtesy of Park Hyatt Seoul

By Kim Se-jeong

Park Hyatt Seoul’s new executive chef, Federico Heinzmann is doing what other chefs at international hotel chains rarely do: researching Korean cuisine and finding stories in them to tell.

His first experiment was a five-day temple food promotion in May, for which he invited Ven. Sunjae to his kitchen to help him prepare temple food for guests. Ven. Sunjae and her team prepared grilled tofu, squash dumplings, seasonal greens-wrapped rice and perilla-mushroom soup, among others, and interacted with the guests.

Guests were surprised by the presence of the monks, particularly Ven Sunjae who is quite well known in the temple food, said the chef who hails from Argentina. “I was surprised by how Koreans were surprised.”

His next project will be about “haenyeo” food, in reference to “haenyeo” or the female divers on Jeju Island, who dive into the waters near the coast to catch fresh seafood and who are the tourist island’s cultural icons.

“We know their story, but it’s difficult to try haenyeo food in Seoul. So what we’re gonna do is to buy their catch and create a promotion here,” the chef said.

The exciting part of the project is that the hotel staff will not know what will arrive from Jeju each morning. “Haenyeo will decide what we’re going to use for that day. The ocean decides what we’re going to eat.”

There’s a sense of fear about uncertainty among the chefs, he said, but for now he’s more enthusiastic than concerned.

What he has to do is to find divers who can supply their catch during the promotion and who might be interested in coming all the way up to Seoul to meet with the hotel guests.

His initiatives with Korean cuisine are based on an observation: “The Korean market is tired of so many buffets.”

And he believes the next trend is in looking into Korea for innovation. “I think people are really looking for something interesting ― interesting values.”

That’s where his idea came in. “We’re looking for the Korean trend ― the Korean spirit and culture. We are hotels in Korea, run by Koreans. We should represent what we have at the moment.”

He acknowledges that it will take time for people to catch on his initiative, but he’s certain that things are coming back to Korea and people will begin to love local ingredients and cuisine that was made with local recipes.

Heinzmann arrived in Korea in February. Coming back to Park Hyatt Seoul for the second round of the post, the chef said he knew what he was looking for.

Part of it was thanks to his long-time friendship with Ven. Sunjae, with whom he has been friends for five years.

Heinzmann said he learned so much from the monk about how to understand nature and how to approach ingredients ― such as the importance of time in preparing ingredients. He once tried a superb dish made by the monk with lotus root.

“I asked ‘Can you give me the recipe?’ She said lotus root and a knife. Only this? I asked. Then she told me that lotus root should be sliced 45 minutes before being cooked. That 45 minutes was the knowledge,” he said.

Ven. Sunjae also taught him to respect the 24 seasons in the year, a special Korean calendar determined by the change in temperature in the nature, and how to take these seasons into account when choosing ingredients.

He takes note of the temperature and humidity in the places from which he gets ingredients. He now also distinguishes farmer suppliers who grow produce naturally from those who grow produce them in greenhouses.

He revamped the entire menu served at Park Hyatt Seoul’s The Lounge. Guests can try a variety of dishes that are cooked with respect for the nature’s order.

Bulgogi salad is a prime example; unlike traditional bulgogi, this dish is served with a good amount of fresh seasonal vegetables on top.

The more he learns, the more he gets fascinated by the local cuisine, the chef said. But he stressed that what he also wants through his initiatives is for local Korean guests to get to know more about their own cuisine and to be prouder of it.

A sample of temple food served during a Park Hyattt Seoul promotion in May