Lab XXIV

Dessert called Apple / Korea Times photo by Kim Da-ye

By Chung Hyun-chae

Customers are sure to be wowed at least four times in Lab XXIV, owned and run by celebrity chef Edward Kwon.

The first surprise is the sheer amount of effort put into the operation of the restaurant.

The venue has only 26 seats in total that are served by 10 chefs besides Kwon and six waiters and waitresses. Each chef takes care of a table at a time, and customers are guaranteed to receive premium service.

Before each dish is served, diners are given a small note that briefly explains which ingredients are used in that dish and what is special about them. By the time diners finish reading the note, the chef in charge will present the dish in person.

Most chefs in Lab XXIV are from overseas. Kwon is well known for his previous role as a head chef at the luxury Burj al Arab Hotel in Dubai from 2007 to 2009. Pastry chef Chad Yamagata was the chief of a bakery department at the same hotel. The name “Lab XXIV” means a laboratory where Kwon and the ten chefs study together and create new dishes constantly for 24 hours.

The menu at Lab XXIV consists of courses — Lab XXIV Tasting Menu, Lab XXIV Lunch, Edward Kwon Gourmet and Lab XXIV dinner. The chefs introduce new courses every three months. No matter how much customers love a particular dish, it will go down in history.

The second wow factor is the food, of course. The restaurant recently unveiled its sixth course for the autumn. The first dish is made of enoki and shitake mushrooms with truffle sauce. The rest include soup made of chestnut, grilled scallop, grilled sea bass and the premium “hanwoo” (Korean beef) tenderloin steak. Each dish is made of rare ingredients and beautifully decorated.

The third jaw-dropping factor is the dessert, a work of art, rather than food, with a molecular gastronomic touch. Chefs bring a big round white plate and use it as a canvas on which they draw with persimmon puree, mango puree, ginger bread crumbs, raspberries frozen with nitrogen and perilla seeds powder, among other ingredients. After watching the performance, even those with no sweet tooth will indulge in the dessert.

The last surprise would be the numbers on the bill. Considering the efforts and expensive ingredients that go into the meal and the location within the affluent Cheongdam area, the food is reasonably priced. Kwon admits that this restaurant does not make a profit. Because he believes in the future of fine dining in Seoul, the profit from his other businesses will be put into LAB XXIV.

The six-course tasting menu this reporter had at lunch and wrote about here is 80,000 won plus 10 percent VAT. Lunch courses are priced at from 30,000 won to 60,000 won, and dinner courses are from 70,000 won to 130,000 won. That’s a deal you don’t want to miss.

Interiors of LAB XXIV / Courtesy of EK Food

Address

LAB XXIV, 100-14, Cheongdam Bldg., Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, Korea

Direction

200 meters from Exit 2 of Apgujeong Rodeo Station on Bundang Line. In an alley of Prada store.

Phone number

02-511-4523

Price

Lunch courses from 30,000 won to 60,000 won and dinner courses from 70,000 won to 130,000 won

Opening hour

11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.

Parking

Valet parking is available.

Private rooms

One private room that caters up to 12 people

Total seating

26 seats