Nae:um

The bright room is furnished in a cream and birch colour scheme, imparting calmness and warmth. The Korean chef Louis Han named his restaurant Nae:um, meaning a fragrance that evokes memories. Food culture and recollections of his home country are at the core of his episodic menu that changes with seasons. Innovative courses are precisely executed and presented in an ethereal, refreshing manner, but have inklings of their Korean roots.

Storybook Dining: A Menu That Tells a Story

• Nae:um 2.0 introduces a novel storybook format for its eight-course Signature Moments menu, including a guest booklet with watercolour illustrations recounting chef Louis Han's culinary journey.
• The format marks a shift in storytelling: the entire meal is designed to narrate the chef’s life through the plate, a hallmark of the restaurant’s new concept as it relaunched in 2025.

Episode-based Culinary Narrative Across Seasons

• Since opening, Nae:um has run episodic menus (nine episodes over four years); Nae:um 2.0 continues this concept, presenting an eight-course menu that finally unfolds as a cohesive story rather than episodic snippets.
• The restaurant fuses Korean heritage with Western technique, with dishes and moments inspired by memory and geography, and the menu advances through new “episodes” each season.

Intimate, Refined Space and Privacy of Nae:um 2.0

• The dining room was redesigned to 24 seats (down from 28) to offer more space and privacy as Nae:um embraces its Michelin one-star status, with a chic, minimalist aesthetic.
• The upgrade also reflects a shift to delivering the chef’s full story on the plate in a more intimate setting, complemented by the restaurant’s private dining option (Hideaway) above Nae:um.

Signature Ingredients

• Five-day dry-aged turbot: A centerpiece of the Nobchi course, pan-seared to a milky, tender texture with a maeuntang-inspired butter sauce. Its prominence in Nae:um 2.0 underscores the chef’s strength with fish, making turbots one of the most honored proteins on the menu. Source notes: described in the Nobchi course as a five-day dry-aged turbot on the HungryGoWhere review.
• Jeju abalone (jeonbok): Featured on a grilled napa cabbage wrap, topped with Oscietra caviar and finished with a light, creamy pine nut cream. The use of Jeju abalone paired with caviar marks it as a luxurious, signature seafood component of Nae:um’s repertoire.
• Oscietra caviar: A high-end roe used as a topping for the jeonbok course, elevating the abalone dish with a delicate pop and rich brine that amplifies the seafood’s sweetness.
• Seabream (domi): The seabream course presented in a lemon-soy vinaigrette, showcasing Nae:um’s Korean-European technique blend and its emphasis on pristine fish flavors.
• Morel mushrooms: A component of the morel-stuffed duck meat patty in the memilmyeon & mandu segment, contributing earthy depth and textural contrast to the dish.
• Duck meat patty (tteokgalbi-inspired): Paired with morels and layered within the memo-nu course; the grilled patty echoes traditional Korean barbecue techniques while fitting Nae:um’s modern storytelling format.
• Buckwheat noodles (memilmyeon): Tossed with perilla and sesame oil, layered with cured tobiko sauce; part of a signature pairing that fuses Korean ingredients with nuanced Asian flavors.
• Perilla leaves and perilla oil: A frequent motif in Nae:um’s plates, used to wrap oxtail and to season the buckwheat noodles; the herb provides a distinctive Korean-Arabesque aroma and a bright, anise-like note.
• Oxtail (sokkori): Braised oxtail wrapped in a perilla leaf and served on a cracker, contributing a comforting, deeply flavorful umami foundation characteristic of Nae:um’s robust early courses.
• Deodeok (Korean root vegetable): Grilled deodeok features in the Hansang course (rice dish with side greens and a clear soup), highlighting the restaurant’s use of Korean-root ingredients to evoke homey, soulful flavors.
• Dongchimi components (radish water kimchi influences): The welcome drink is built around dongchimi with a chilled tomato broth, clarified tomato jelly, Amela tomato, and raw seafood, illustrating Nae:um’s playful modern approach to classic Korean pickles and broths.
• Gochugaru-based accents (Korean chili flakes): Used in the turbot dish’s sauce and in overall seasoning, reflecting the restaurant’s Korean heritage and its balance with Western technique.
• Tomatoes and Amela tomato: Featured in the dongchimi-inspired welcome drink, contributing brightness and acidity to the opening moment of the meal.

Tasting menus at Nae:um (Singapore)

• Signature Moments (8 courses): S$268 Description: The eight-course tasting menu for Nae:um 2.0.

• Brief Moments (Lunch, 5 courses): S$198 Description: Abbreviated lunch tasting format.

Other tasting-price references

• Tasting menu from $150 Source: Worlds 50 Best listing; currency not specified on that page.

Selected signature dishes / concepts with prices (from other listings)

• Episode Recollection (Lunch): $188
• Episode 6 After Work Hideaway (Dinner): $198 (standard), $258 (premium/variant)