Certified Italian, Spanish restaurants announced

Italian restaurant Il Chiasso, where the award ceremony for Ospitalita Italiana was held Monday, was among four newly selected restaurants that received certification this year. / Courtesy of ITCCK

By Yun Suh-young

The Italian and Spanish governments and chambers of commerce have consecutively announced certified restaurants representing their countries this week.

The Italian Chamber of Commerce in Korea (ITCCK) awarded the Ospitalita Italiana, a prize certifying restaurants that are authentically Italian, to 21 restaurants on Monday, including four restaurants joining the list for the first time.

The newly included restaurants are Il Chiasso, Pasto, Terra13, and Wood and Brick.

The Italian government began awarding restaurants in 2009, and restaurants in Korea have been selected for the past five years. Currently the award goes to Italian restaurants in 60 countries around the globe.

"A special commission selects the most authentic Italian restaurants all over the world. The process for selecting these restaurants for the award is long and difficult. Usually the government commissions work with the Italian Chamber of Commerce in every country in order to select the restaurants, examine them and make the final decisions," said Alberto Mondi, vice president of ITCCK during the award ceremony Monday.

"The ITCCK receives applications from the restaurants and then examines criteria such as the food, menu, service and wine list. Then we report to Italy and the final decision is made by this commission. We need to check every year if the restaurants comply with the criteria. We've been doing this for five years now in Korea. So far we have 17 restaurants that have previously received the award and four new restaurants awarded today. It's a pleasure for ITCCK to be part of this and it's an important initiative in order to maintain the authenticity of Italian food all over the world."

The 21 certified "authentic Italian" restaurants are as follows: Allatorre, Atrio, Brera, Cornerstone, Eataly, Harmonium, Il Chiasso, Kitchen 485, paolodemaria Fine Trattoria, Pasto, Peck Seoul, Peninsula, Restaurant 8, Ristorante, Ristorante EO, SKY LOUNGE, Terra13, The Kitchen Salvatore & Bar, The Kitchen Salvatore Cuomo, Vera, and Wood and Brick.

The Italian government will also be celebrating the "World Week of Italian Cuisine" until Nov. 26.

"It's the second edition of the whole week dedicated to Italian food, organized by the Italian government and all over the world in more than 100 countries. We're organizing more than 1,000 events all connected to Italian food, and this year the week is concentrated on food and wine. The wine festival will be done in most of these restaurants to celebrate Italian wine. These restaurants provide Italian recipes, Italian dishes cooked by Italian chefs or chefs who studied in Italy so you are guaranteed it's totally Italian," Italian Ambassador to Korea Marco Della Seta said.

The Spanish Embassy and the Spanish Chamber of Commerce (ESCCK) also held an event the following day, announcing 23 restaurants that were uniquely Spanish published in the Spanish Restaurant Guide. The guide is a joint project of the ESCCK and food writer Kwon Hye-rim.

Spanish tapas are served by restaurant Spain Club at the Embassy of Spain in Seoul, Tuesday, during an event introducing 23 restaurants in the Spanish Restaurant Guide. Spain Club was included among the restaurants. / Courtesy of ESCCK

The 23 restaurants selected in the Spain Restaurant Guide were among 49 Spanish restaurants in Seoul and surrounding regions. They have been specially selected for having only Spanish dishes on the menu, for using Spanish ingredients, and also for using seasonal ingredients to create innovative tapas dishes based on traditional Spanish recipes.

"The rich flavors of Spanish cuisine have an appeal among Koreans. Particularly I think there is fertile ground for first-class Iberico ham, olive oil and high-quality wines," said Gonzalo Ortiz, Spanish Ambassador to Korea.

"These days the people are getting very much focused on what they are eating, trying to follow a healthy diet. With the so-called Mediterranean diet -- or the Atlantic diet version -- Spanish gastronomy offers high-quality ingredients, low-fat food, fresh vegetables and fruits and deliciously prepared fish and seafood. I am sure that Spanish food and wines will not let you down."

The 23 selected Spanish restaurants are: El Olivo, Cocina Espana, The Xef Manuel, Spain Club, Sobremesa, My Moo, El Tapeo, El CuBito, Y Shop, El Plato, Terreno, Tapas Gourmet, Tapa Madre, Calle de Gomis, Tapas Bar, Tapeo, Mi Madre, Momentos, El Pakito, Spain Night Market, La mesa del Quijote, Come y Bebe, and Carino.

The guide is available online at escck.com/restaurant-guide in Korean, English and Spanish and will soon be published in print.