Jeju-do may seem like a peaceful place for travelers, but in reality, fierce competition is going on there every day to attract customers in the food service industry. It is one of the most competitive battlegrounds for restaurants in South Korea.
The officials from Jeju estimate that there are currently around 20,000 restaurants operating on the island. Although the rush has somewhat subsided, new restaurants are still open, and many closed down due to the intense competition. This makes it challenging to choose which restaurant is worth visiting when traveling to Jeju.
The Jeju Food & Wine Festival (JFWF), a gastronomic festival taking place from May 9 to May 18, has set a new standard for finding great restaurants Jeju’s dynamic dining scene.
The Jeju Food and Wine Festival (JFWF) has been running for nine years now since its launch in 2016. Every May, the festival selects and announces the ‘Gourmet Spoon 200′, which comprises the top 1% of restaurants out of the 20,000 availables in Jeju.
The JFWF Organizing Committee uses a strict selection process to identify the top 1% of restaurants in Jeju. To begin with, they commission an AI company to collect data on the most mentioned restaurants across various social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, blogs, and others.
This data is then used to create a pool of candidate restaurants. A panel of 10 local food and dining experts then recommends the best restaurants from this pool of candidates.
The selected restaurants are then contacted directly by the organizing committee to confirm if they meet the JFWF’s criteria for a Jeju gourmet restaurant. One of the crucial criteria is that the restaurant must have been in operation for at least a year and must use Jeju ingredients.
The JFWF official stated that restaurants using cheaper alternatives, such as Chinese bracken instead of the expensive Jeju variety or abalone from Wando in Jeollanam-do instead of Jeju, cannot be included in the list, even if they are popular among visitors.
This year, 20 new restaurants have made it into the recently released Gourmet Spoon list. Fourteen are from Jeju City, and six are from Seogwipo City.
The JFWF explained, “Among the 700,000 residents of Jeju, about 500,000 live in Jeju City, which is more than double the population of Seogwipo (200,000). Therefore, it’s likely that more restaurants are concentrated in Jeju City.”
A closer look at the 20 new entries reveals that six of them are cafes, which is unsurprising given the popularity of ‘cafe tours’ as travel packages in Jeju.
However, the list offers a diverse range of culinary options. From local food restaurants that use native ingredients like Jeju black pork and bracken hangover soup, to seafood restaurants that sell fish caught by ‘haenyeo’ (female divers in Jeju), and fine dining restaurants run by chefs with experience in Hong Kong and Spain.
During the JFWF festival, the restaurants that are part of Gourmet Spoon offer various benefits such as discounts, complimentary beverages or side dishes, and special menus.
To benifit from these promotions, one must show proof of their subscription to JFWF’s YouTube and Instagram channels. The complete list of 200 gourmet restaurants can be found on the JFWF website, jfwf.kr. Using mobile gift certificates will also give a 10% discount to users.
This year, a ‘Wine Dinner’ event will take place on May 17. The event will feature a 6-course dinner, paired with wines recommended by world-renowned wine critic James Suckling.
During the dinner, Suckling will provide explanations about each wine. Additionally, the ‘Wine Fair’ will offer attendees the chance to taste dozens of wines that have received high ratings from Suckling.
During the ‘Garden Dinner’ event, seven renowned chefs, Kang Min-chul, Kwon Woo-joong, Park Ju-eun from Seoul, and Richard Takeda from Tokyo, will showcase their culinary skills by using Jeju ingredients in their dishes.
Additionally, in the ‘Master Chef Class’, these chefs will provide cooking tips and tricks along with tastings. Moreover, the ‘Dessert Fair’ will bring together popular bakeries and cafes from Jeju, making it easier and cheaper for visitors to try trendy bread, desserts, and coffee at discounted prices.
