The next edition of gastronomic thought-leadership series #50BestTalks will take the stage in Seoul on Monday 25th March as part of the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2024 events programme. A rural recipe collector, three renowned chefs from across the continent, a young Indian rewriting culinary guidelines and a Korean cold noodle specialist are on the roster to share the intricacies and idiosyncrasies of Asian cuisine. Here’s everything you need to know about #50BestTalks: Food of the People
From fermentation techniques to family recipes, the first Asian edition of #50BestTalks since the global pandemic will celebrate the origins and inherent delights of ‘ordinary’ dishes. It will showcase the nostalgic flavours many chefs grew up eating, that have since been adapted for today’s diners and feature in renowned restaurants around the world.
The live event, taking place on Monday 25th March at Four Seasons Hotel Seoul, explores dishes made from scratch and from memory, with skills passed down orally from generation to generation. With a collection of special guests, speakers and demonstrations, Food of the People will highlight real people’s real food journeys, from the simplest of dishes created to preserve and protect ancient ingredients to traditional dishes reimagined.
Don’t miss this exclusive chance to hear directly from global gastronomic luminaries. Meet the speakers below and set an alarm to watch the livestream of #50BestTalks: Food of the People on YouTube or follow the live highlights on @theworlds50best Instagram Stories.
Spoken Recipes
Mi-hyun Ha, author and CEO of Spoken Company
Mi-hyun Ha has travelled across Korea and around the world to study food and ingredients grown by local farmers and indigenous communities who have never documented their everyday recipes and cooking methods. Her work to discover uncommon recipes and to give a voice to under-represented communities across South Korea and beyond has culminated in the foundation of Ipmal Eumsik (Spoken Company).
Ha will emphasise the importance of recording and preserving ancient food traditions in an ever-changing culinary landscape, while demonstrating the shared characteristics she has discovered between rural Korean cooking and international native cuisines.
The many faces of fermentation
Richie Lin of Mume, Taipei; Johanne Siy of Lolla, Singapore; Peter Cuong Franklin of Anan Saigon, Ho Chi Mihn City
Drying, pickling and salting are common practices in the oldest methods of food preservation in Asia, with every country and region developing and utilising different methods and source materials. As part of #50BestTalks in Seoul, chefs from three of Asia’s leading restaurants outline their experiences of fermentation from their respective countries and in their respective kitchens.
Vietnamese-American banker turned chef Peter Cuong Franklin is at the helm of Anăn Saigon, which offers a menu made up of dynamic, street-food inspired dishes. The Asia’s 50 Best 2023-listed restaurant is located in Ho Chi Minh’s oldest wet market and also houses noodle joint Pot Au Pho, which pays homage to Franklin's birth mother, who runs a traditional noodle shop in Dalat. Franklin will present how local chillis and complex ferments combine to create Vietnam’s signature fermented fish sauce and he’ll serve up a sample to try with another Vietnamese classic: prawn crackers.
The current holder of the Asia’s Best Female Chef title, Johanne Siy has worked in some of the world’s finest restaurants, including Noma, Fäviken and Restaurant André. Siy’s restaurant, Lolla, in Singapore has an international feel, but also mines the chef’s own background with dishes inspired by memories of her childhood in the Philippines. Siy will talk about the fermented foods that are a permanent fixture in Filipino dishes, from preserved pickles to fish and rice, and give attendees a taste of tradition from her home country.
Hong-Kong-born Richie Lin he pays homage to his adopted home of Taiwan in his restaurant, Mume. Meaning ‘plum blossom’, Mume is known for serving up fresh, flavour-packed dishes that explore and celebrate lesser-known ingredients native to the island, such as goose barnacles. Lin will help #50BestTalks attendees understand the nuances of Taiwanese methods of pickling and preserving and give out a sample of a traditional fermented ingredient.
India: the new culinary blueprint
Jishnu AJ and Niyati Rao of Ekaa, Mumbai 
The menu at Niyati Rao’s Mumbai restaurant, Ekaa, represents a culmination of the young chef’s travels around India, breaking down expectations and assumptions along the way. The name ‘Ekaa’ means one or unique, and aptly encapsulates Rao’s regionally focused vision. This philosophy is reflected at Ekaa’s bar under the watchful eyes of head mixologist Jishnu AJ. AJ uses the vast and diverse landscape of India as his personal larder, creating a cocktail programme that showcases native ingredients such as jatamansi from Kashmir. The duo will outline India’s rich heritage, diversity of ingredients and culinary evolution, plus, offer up two edible treats that encapsulate Ekaa’s kitchen and bar.
The art of the (cold) noodle
Do-yun Kim of Yun, Seoul
Chef Do-yun Kim has been cooking for more than 30 years, driven by a passion for discovering new ingredients and new ways to utilise them in his restaurant. Nowhere is this more evident than in his work with naengmyeon, or cold noodles, which can trace their origins back to the 18th Century Joseon Dynasty and have evolved regionally over the past two hundred years. What might seem like a simple bowl of broth and noodles is actually an intricately balanced symphony of flavours that Kim is constantly striving to improve. Next on his agenda: creating noodles with distinct ‘scents’. #50BestTalks attendees will be able to witness Kim making his distinctive broth on stage and sample some of his own-recipe cold buckwheat noodles.
The list of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2024, sponsored by S.Pellegrino & Acqua Panna, will be announced on Tuesday 26th March from Seoul. To stay up to date with the latest news, follow us on Instagram, Facebook, X and YouTube, and sign up to our newsletter
