Food Guide
VINVIN - The Best Little Fine Dining in Seoul
Jachin
December 9, 2022
The borders are opening up and it’s time to travel again. With COVID on the decline, it’s a great time to visit the culturally rich Seoul, South Korea with tons of great food and history to explore. It's your perfect opportunity to visit and experience it for yourself.
VINVIN is a modern European dining bar found in the awesome Shinheung Art Market. Only being 6 months old I think this little restaurant is off to a great start with a bright future ahead. The price is midrange for a fine dining restaurant although quite steep for a student like me. In saying that I enjoyed it so much that I will be going back again.
Started in 1968 a few years after Korea’s liberation from Japan, the Shinheung Art Market is an awesome little spot tucked away in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. During its heyday in the 70s and 80s, it was a booming market packed with workshops full of artisan crafts but recently after an interest spike in vintage and retro styles, a large amount of trendy new restaurants and cafes have been moving in.
VINVIN itself has a very nice atmosphere. The only way I can think to describe it is somehow classy and comforting at the same time. The décor and design is very nice. It all matches the classy cozy atmosphere but still keeps a level of uniqueness often lost in modern interior design. All this mixed with the incredible jazz and hip hop plus lofi-infused music somehow come together to be greater than the sum of their parts ultimately leading to a unique classy yet comforting amazing little restaurant with incredible soul and feel.
During my night the staff were very friendly and adept. The owner (and head chef) was a delight and was a great help to us as our party didn’t have anyone who could speak Korean. We talked quite a bit over the evening, and it turns out he is also a Kiwi (New Zealander) who moved back to Korea for military service and business. Lovely people and wonderful service.
For Dinner, we had a large Australian lamb dish with a side of potatoes. The base of the dish was smooth cheesy mashed potatoes under 2 tender short ribs slow cooked for 24 hours Sous Vide, meaning slow cooked in water inside a vacuum-sealed plastic bag. On top was an incredibly tasty dry aged lamb steak with a beautiful sear, cooked to a perfect medium rare and topped with some beautiful mint green peas. I thoroughly loved this dish. Everything was perfectly cooked and fit together very well. Everything about it was flawless. I couldn't find a single problem with anything even if I tried. As quite a cheap person I’m very picky about the price of food but I truly think they could charge more.
As a non-drinker, I’m not sure about wine but even I could tell they had quite a large selection of wines. So, if that’s your thing I would recommend giving them a try as I saw other reviews praising the wine.
In conclusion, with the combination of exquisite food, awesome people and a comforting setting I've turned into a big fan and will certainly be back for more in the near future. The stand out of the evening would have to go to the lamb dish everything else very close behind. The location for all interested is at the bottom of the page, I hope to see you there.
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