Restaurant in Seoul, South Korea
Counter-seat Korean precision, easy to book.
YUN is a counter-led Korean set-menu restaurant in Gangnam where chef-owner Kim Do-yun builds multi-course meals around fermentation, aging, and housemade noodles. At ₩₩₩ it sits below Seoul's priciest tasting menus and books easily — 1 to 2 weeks ahead is usually enough. A strong choice for a special occasion dinner or focused weekday lunch.
Getting a table at YUN is not a battle — booking is rated easy, which puts it in a different category from Seoul's more fought-over reservation targets. That accessibility makes the real question sharper: does the experience justify the effort of planning around it? The answer is yes, with one caveat. YUN is a counter-led, multi-course set menu restaurant built around a chef who thinks seriously about fermentation, aging, and noodles. If that format suits you, this is one of Gangnam's more compelling special-occasion restaurants at the ₩₩₩ price point. If you want à la carte flexibility or a more casual drop-in, look elsewhere.
YUN recently relocated from Mapo to Gangnam, and the move came with a significant upgrade in physical presence. The dining hall has been expanded and renovated, and the result reads as elegant without tipping into stiff. The counter is the focal point: it gives diners a direct line of sight to the kitchen and, more usefully, to the chef's explanations of the techniques behind each dish — the aging, fermenting, and drying processes that define the menu's character. For a special occasion, the counter is the right seat. You are not just eating; you are watching a working kitchen operate with deliberate precision, and the explanations are part of what you are paying for. If your group prefers a table setting over counter seating, confirm your preference when booking, as the expanded hall now offers both configurations.
YUN's menu is set and multi-course, built around what chef-owner Kim Do-yun does with Korean ingredients taken through serious preparation. The perilla oil noodles , made with housemade Korean wheat noodles , are the dish most frequently cited in the venue's own description of its direction. House-aged fish dishes appear across the menu, alongside Korean beef preparations added more recently. The common thread is depth through process: fermentation, aging, and drying techniques that add layers of flavor and textural contrast to ingredients that might read simply on paper.
On the drinks side, YUN's program warrants attention if you are thinking about the full experience. Korean restaurants at this tier increasingly pair their set menus with considered drink selections , traditional Korean spirits, natural wines, or craft pairings that match the fermentation-forward cooking. Whether YUN offers a formal pairing menu is worth confirming at the time of booking, but given the kitchen's explicit focus on fermented and aged flavors, a drinks pairing here has more thematic logic than it would at a more generically modern Korean table. If you are coming for a celebration and want the full arc of the meal, ask about pairing options when you reserve.
YUN opens Tuesday through Saturday from 12 PM to 10 PM, with Monday and Sunday closed. Lunch service starts at noon and gives you access to the same kitchen and counter experience without the evening pricing pressure that some tasting menus carry. For a special occasion dinner, Friday or Saturday evenings will feel the most celebratory in terms of room energy, but the counter experience at a weekday lunch is arguably the more focused way to engage with what the chef is doing , fewer variables, more attention from the kitchen. If you are booking for a birthday or anniversary, a Saturday dinner is the conventional choice and the room's renovated setting supports it. For a business meal where conversation matters, a weekday lunch is the cleaner option.
YUN holds a Google rating of 4.7 from 60 reviews , a high score, though the review count is relatively modest. The venue's awards text references recognition from what reads as a Michelin Guide inspector's note, describing the chef's technical depth, his fascination with noodles, and the counter format specifically. That framing , precision, audacity, rarely found in ordinary Korean cuisine , places YUN in a tier above casual Korean dining without claiming the very leading of Seoul's fine dining hierarchy. At ₩₩₩, it is correctly priced for what it delivers.
Reservations: Easy to book by Seoul fine-dining standards , plan 1 to 2 weeks ahead to be safe, especially for weekend evenings. Hours: Tuesday to Saturday, 12 PM to 10 PM; closed Monday and Sunday. Address: 805 Seolleung-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Price: ₩₩₩ , mid-to-upper range for Seoul, below the ₩₩₩₩ tier occupied by venues like Onjium and Mingles. Format: Multi-course set menu at a counter with table seating also available. Groups: The counter format works leading for 2 to 4 diners; larger groups should confirm table arrangements in advance. Dress: Smart casual is appropriate given the renovated, elegant setting , overly casual dress would feel out of place at the counter. Getting there: Gangnam-gu is well-served by Seoul Metro; Seolleung or Yeoksam stations are the practical access points depending on your starting point. For a broader look at where YUN sits in Seoul's dining options, see our full Seoul restaurants guide. If you are planning a longer trip, our Seoul hotels guide, bars guide, and experiences guide cover the rest of the city.
If you are building a Seoul itinerary around serious Korean cooking, Kwonsooksoo and La Yeon represent different points on the spectrum , the former more contemporary, the latter rooted in royal court tradition. Bicena is worth considering if you want modern Korean at a similar price tier with a different culinary emphasis. Beyond Seoul, Mori in Busan and Double T Dining in Gangneung are worthwhile detours if your itinerary extends outside the capital. For Korean cooking in other cities, Jeju Noodle Bar in New York City and DOSA in London are points of comparison for what Korean cuisine looks like when transplanted to a different context. Regional options worth noting for completeness: Doosoogobang in Suwon, Injegol in Inje County, and Pool House in Incheon round out the broader Korean dining picture. Seoul wineries are also an emerging category worth checking if natural wine or makgeolli production interests you.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| YUN | Korean | ₩₩₩ | Chef-Owner Kim Do-yun is someone clearly passionate about ingredients, and he holds a particular fascination for noodles. The counter allows those lucky enough to have secured reservations a front-row seat to witness the dishes’ creation and hear the detailed explanations of the aging, fermenting and drying techniques that are used to add such depth of flavor and contrasting textures to the fish and meats that make up the multi-course set menu. This is cooking from a chef who never stops learning or developing his skills.; YUN offers familiar Korean dishes with bold twists. Its nutty-flavored perilla oil noodles featuring housemade Korean wheat noodles, various house-aged fish dishes, and newly added umami-rich Korean beef offerings – all hint at the culinary direction the chef is headed towards. With a relocation from Mapo to Gangnam, this restaurant has expanded and renovated its dining hall, which now exudes elegant yet striking vibes. Come to Yun Seoul and experience the precision and audacity that are rarely found in ordinary Korean cuisine. | Easy | — |
| 7th Door | Korean, Contemporary | ₩₩₩₩ | Michelin 1 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Solbam | Contemporary | ₩₩₩₩ | Michelin 1 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Onjium | Korean | ₩₩₩₩ | Michelin 1 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| L'Amitié | French | ₩₩₩ | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
| Zero Complex | Korean-French, Innovative | ₩₩₩₩ | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
What to weigh when choosing between YUN and alternatives.
At ₩₩₩, YUN earns its price through preparation depth rather than luxury signalling — housemade noodles, house-aged fish, and fermented ingredients are the focus. The counter format, where chef-owner Kim Do-yun's aging and fermenting techniques are explained dish by dish, adds real value for food-interested diners. If you want Korean cooking that goes beyond the familiar without paying top-tier Seoul prices, YUN sits at a practical midpoint. Diners who prefer à la carte flexibility will find the fixed multi-course format limiting.
Onjium is the closest alternative for technique-driven traditional Korean, though it is considerably harder to book and sits at a higher price point. Kwonsooksoo and La Yeon (referenced in YUN's own editorial context) cover similar ground at different price tiers. Zero Complex and L'Amitié offer fusion-leaning formats if the strictly Korean tasting menu structure at YUN is not what you are after.
YUN is rated easy to book by Seoul fine-dining standards — one to two weeks ahead is generally sufficient, with weekend evenings the tightest window. This puts it in a different bracket from Seoul's hardest reservations, where months-out planning is standard. That relative accessibility is worth factoring in if you are building an itinerary late.
The counter seating format, which is central to the YUN experience, suits parties of two most naturally. The relocation from Mapo to Gangnam brought an expanded dining hall, which may allow for larger bookings, but specific private dining or group policies are not documented. check the venue's official channels before planning a group of six or more.
YUN opens at noon Tuesday through Saturday, and lunch gives access to the same kitchen and multi-course format as dinner. Lunch is the better call if you want the counter experience with more flexibility to extend the afternoon. Dinner works if you prefer the full-evening pacing, but the menu format does not change materially between services.
YUN runs a set multi-course menu, so there is no à la carte ordering — the kitchen decides the progression. The recurring anchors are the perilla oil noodles made from housemade Korean wheat noodles, house-aged fish dishes, and Korean beef preparations described as umami-forward. The chef's focus on aging, fermenting, and drying techniques runs through the full menu, so the experience is consistent rather than dependent on a single dish choice.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
