Bornyon, Seoul’s latest new-Korean cuisine restaurant, was inspired by a chair

Imagine this: You’re on an open roof terrace, champagne in hand. It is the time when dusk starts its painterly show in the sky, changing vast expanses of blue into a blended canvas of lemon, saffron and sand. The distant mountains are now shadowy like a mirage, and in the foreground, the sterile buildings of a metropolis suddenly become romantic totems framing a perfect golden orb that is the sun.
That was the view I encountered from the outdoor terrace of Bornyon in Seoul. It is one of the city’s newest fine dining establishments, opened by real estate entrepreneur Kim Youngkwon. What it offers is not just a story about food, although it is to be said that chef Bae Kyung-Jun’s ingenious interpretation of Korean ingredients and techniques deserves a story in itself. This is an inspirational tale about the indefatigable search for authenticity and the creation of lasting memories.
In Bornyon, Series 7 and Swan chairs from Danish furniture brand Fritz Hansen furnish a gentle peach-tone setting by progressive young South Korean architecture firm A-D-O. Architect and designer Arne Jacobsen designed both chairs but the Swan, conceived for the Royal Hotel in Copenhagen and that bears the graceful shape of its namesake, is the star at this restaurant for it was an encounter with the chair that led to Bornyon’s ideation.
In May 2023, Kim had sat on a Swan chair while dining at Savor Vals, a restaurant in the famed Therme Vals hotel and spa in Switzerland designed by Swiss architect Peter Zumthor. “I visited Therme Vals specifically to study the architecture. From a developer’s perspective, it was important for me to see how the building was constructed,” said Kim on the structure that stacks 60,000 slabs of Vals quartzite over the thermal springs in the Graubünden canton in Switzerland.
It was a eureka moment for Kim. For the first time, he did not have to twist his body to make himself comfortable in a dining chair after a prolonged period. He realised the difference it made for a restaurant to install comfortable chairs.
Filled with appreciation for the heritage and artistry embodied in the chair – it was developed in 1958 but was so well created that the original design is still timeless – Kim embarked on a restaurant project that, like the chair, would stand the test of time, becoming more beloved by patrons as it ages rather than pander to fleeting trends.
He found the perfect location in the glitzy Gangnam stretch. While the exterior is nondescript, its interiors offered lofty proportions. “The building was designed for wedding ceremonies hence each level has high ceilings, but it closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. On the sixth floor where Bornyon is, the ceiling is more than 7m high,” Kim said. This is the only restaurant in Gangnam that has a roof terrace offering such spectacular views that is not located in a hotel.
Kim chose to upholster the Swan chairs in natural leather – a foolhardy decision by any restaurateur given that the material cannot be protected from blemishes. But the goal was patina and a “sense of enduring beauty” rather than perfection. He reiterated: “Even if it gets stained from wine or marks from hands, it ages beautifully. I imagine it would be very welcoming to see those marks when revisiting the restaurant in 10 years’ time.”
Bornyon’s name, referring to an essential or natural state, poetically embodies this philosophy. Likewise, the food celebrates nature, craft and time. Chef Bae marries two Korean food preparation techniques – fermentation and woodfire. In his kitchen, a large hearth anchoring a corner is blackened with daily use.
“We try to keep the ingredients as authentic as possible,” said Bae, whom I cornered after dinner, curious about his approach to creating the intriguing flavours I had savoured. For example, there was Bindaetteok, Wild Chives, Mexican Chilli’ (eschewing fancy names, the dishes simply list their core ingredients), which is his interpretation of buchujeon (Korean chive pancake).
“I’ve always found the aroma of charred chives while cooking the pancake on rainy days or holidays to be especially appealing. Drawing on that experience, I grilled chives over charcoal and filled them with fresh shrimp. I also added extra depth to the dish by roasting dried red shrimp from Wando over a wood-fired oven to enhance their fragrance,” chef Bae elucidated.
Buchujeon is typically served with soy sauce but chef Bae was inspired by the version in southeastern Korea that uses vinegar-infused chilli paste. “I wanted to further explore the relationship between chilli and shrimp, so I incorporated Guajillo and New Mexican chillies, which add a subtle complexity and heat beyond the typical Korean pepper flavour,” he added.   
On fermentation, he is drawn to how the process intensifies an ingredient’s flavours over time and lets him use ingredients across seasons. In Wild Duck, Bokbunja, Strawberry, the charcoal-grilled, two week-aged meat is paired with fermented red cabbage, cardamom and caraway seeds.
Many of chef Bae’s recipes are inspired by childhood memories. “When I was in elementary school, my parents were always busy working so sometimes when I came home, I tried to make my own meals,” he said of his early kitchen adventures. Were there any mishaps? “Always,” the chef mused. “But I love food. And I love to cook.”
This passion led him to New York where he studied at the famous Culinary Institute of America after graduating from high school in California. In 2019, he returned to Seoul to work at Mosu. Helmed by chef Son Jong-won, Mosu made headlines for being the first establishment to be awarded three Michelin stars in 2022 following a six-year drought. Until then, there were only two three-Michelin-starred restaurants in Seoul – Gaon and La Yeon – since the South Korean city published its first Michelin guide in 2016.
Despite his beginnings in the fine dining scene, chef Bae does not want Bornyon to be intimidating. “We try to make it cosy and friendly,” commented the 30-year-old, referencing the symbolism of the hearth’s fire in creating bonds over rituals of cooking and meals since days of yore.
He leans to Oak wood from the Korean forests for firewood, as it reminds him of his grandmother’s kitchen. “I love the smell from the smoke of an Oak wood fire. My grandma would cook using Oak wood. Every time I went to her house, I would play with the fire, and my mother and grandma would chase me out,” he chuckled at the recollection.
Another wood-fired dish at Bornyon is Abalone, Summer Squash, Golden Plum, which has steamed abalone coated with beef tallow and grilled over charcoal. “It is accompanied by a puree made from slow-roasted zucchini, cooked in a wood-fired oven to bring out a mellow sweetness. I balanced the dish with a touch of acidity from yellow plum syrup, aged since last summer,” chef Bae said.
The Scorched Rice and Anchovy dish is his take on the typical Korean sustenance of rice and banchan (side dish). It is based on the memory of burnt rice scraped form the bottom of the rice cooker. “That taste is very good to me. So we scorch the rice and dip it overnight in milk that is used to make the bread,” he explained. Puffed rice on the bread, toasted and marinated with soya sauce, adds a “kind of sweet, salty and crunchy” accent.
The restaurant, opened on May 1, 2024, is slowly gaining attention in Seoul. But this is not Kim’s first culinary venture; in 2022, he opened Montsoop – a sleek, farm-to-table restaurant serving neo-Korean cuisine (it is now closed). Interestingly, his preoccupation with design came only after graduating from university, where he studied material science as a dependable choice, not having a clear career direction.
“My interest in architecture started with my volunteer work with Habitat for Humanity and Save the Children, where I helped build houses in Indonesia and schools in Nepal. Those experiences made me want to become a real estate developer,” shared the 37-year-old.
Intrigued by the built environment, he worked at a construction company for seven years, all the while feeding his ferocious appetite for architecture and design through travels to investigate what constitutes a great piece of work. Therme Vals was one such trip. “I like architects who use local materials to create detailed expressions of locality,” Kim said, naming Japanese architect Kengo Kuma as another source of inspiration alongside Peter Zumthor.
In 2021, he established Playa Co Ltd, a company aimed at creating meaningful places and experiences. Aside from the restaurants, another project is Playa on the third floor in the building. It is a private members’ club for young entrepreneurs to network and is by invitation only.
The idea is to provide a meeting place centred on health and wellness, so there are high-end fitness facilities including tennis and badminton courts. Another on-going project is a building near Namsam Mountain designed by South Korean firm BCHO, founded by famous architect Byoung-Soo Cho.
Bornyon provides an extension of the private members’ club, where business can also be discussed over a meal or post-workout drinks against the skyline. Kim hopes it becomes a place where patrons return because they feel well taken care of.
Likewise, chef Bae wants Bornyon to become a place of legacy – the sort of restaurant patrons’ children would return to with their own families. He references Mingles, a two-Michelin-starred establishment in Gangnam that turns 10 this year. “In South Korea, few restaurants last beyond 10 years. I want people to experience my restaurant for more than that. That would be amazing.