7th Door

Chef Kim Dae-chun’s cooking continues to diversify and deepen over time. The menu at this restaurant embodies the culinary direction he wishes to pursue, largely thanks to his modern Korean preparations. Under the theme of fermentation and aging, the essential attributes of Korean gastronomy, the chef prepares ingredients with care and expertise. The 7th Door symbolises a gastronomic entrance to “the seven tastes of food,” the first five being the five basic tastes; the sixth, the taste of fermentation and aging; and the seventh, the culinary sensibility of the chef.

A single organising idea, taken seriously

• The restaurant is built around fermentation and aging, framed as a Korean foundation rather than a modern garnish.

The seven tastes framing

• The concept is explicit, the five basic tastes, a sixth for fermentation and aging, and a seventh that stands for the chef’s sensibility.

A chef in expansion mode

• Kim Dae-chun’s cooking is described as continuing to diversify and deepen over time, the menu is used to show the direction he wants to pursue.

Ingredient handling

• Fermentation and aging are used as the organising principle for flavours, ingredients are prepared under that theme rather than dressed at the end.
• Modern Korean preparations, where technique drives depth more than luxury garnish.

Format

• Chef’s table style dining with a set menu, built around modern Korean cooking.

Central idea

• Fermentation and aging are treated as core Korean techniques, the menu is organised as a progression through seven tastes, the five basic tastes, a sixth for fermentation and aging, then the chef’s own sensibility as the seventh.