Lim Jung-sik and Kang Min-goo are popular guests in Taiwan – only dinner seatings remain available

▲ Rice with soy-marinated lobster.

Reported and photographed by Huang Shih-yuan / Taipei

The two hottest Korean male chefs in Korea, Lim Jung-sik and Kang Min-goo, are teaming up for their first joint guest appearance in Taiwan. From November 3 to 5, they will be at Robin’s Steakhouse on the second floor of Taipei’s Regent Taipei, and on November 6 at Robin’s Steakhouse on the first floor of Grand Formosa Regent Tainan, presenting the “K-Cuisine Superstars x2” gourmet feast. Lunch seatings are nearly fully booked, with only a few dinner slots still available.


▲ Korean sauce trio.

Lim Jung-sik and Kang Min-goo are hailed in Korea as pioneers in globalizing Korean cuisine. Korean flavor is the foundation of all of Kang Min-goo’s dishes, and various Korean sauces are the source of that flavor—such as doenjang (Korean fermented soybean paste), ganjang (Korean soy sauce), and gochujang (Korean chili paste). For instance, the dessert “Korean Sauce Trio” ingeniously incorporates doenjang, ganjang, and gochujang into a Western-style sweet. A French crème brûlée and ice cream are topped with walnuts marinated in ganjang, popcorn drizzled with gochujang, plus an innovative layer of whiskey foam—delivering a variety of textures and flavors including salty, sweet, aromatic, spicy, and crispy all in one bite.

Lim Jung-sik, who owns restaurants in New York, USA, and Seoul, Korea, has elevated Korean cuisine with a modern twist and brought it to the international stage. One of the dishes he is serving during his guest appearance, “Rice with Soy-Marinated Lobster,” showcases his skill in using Korean ingredients. Fresh lobster meat is marinated for 48 hours with Korean soy sauce, sugar, fish sauce, red dates, kelp, and other seasonings. When plated, rice is placed at the bottom, topped with the marinated lobster, crispy shrimp chips, and chives.


▲ Antarctic Patagonian toothfish, Korean-style mayonnaise, seasonal vegetables.


▲ Korean abalone and kelp broth.


▲ Doenjang-marinated duck liver, snow crab, seasonal fruits.