Spring fusion omakase in Pangyo: sea urchin on steamed abalone, Kkweda

Kkweda in Pangyo: a fusion omakase dinner booked a month ahead

Kkweda Pangyo Avenue France Branch (꿰다 판교아브뉴프랑점) is famous as a top omakase spot in Pangyo, so I booked a month in advance and went for dinner. My expectations were huge, and it was a really fun meal where I kept wondering what would come next the whole way through.

I arrived right on my reservation time, and the mood was great from the entrance. (Be on time for your reservation!)

What is the atmosphere like inside Kkweda?

Inside, the soft lighting and clean interior stood out, and overall it felt calm yet upscale. I think it would suit dates and anniversaries, but also family gatherings or wedding-invitation meetups.

What is Kkweda's 12th-season "Spring and Jang" course?

Kkweda serves a borderless omakase, inspired by food cultures from many countries and reinterpreted for Korean tastes, and I hear the course changes with each season. The day I visited, it was the 12th season, the "Spring and Jang" course! (Jang means Korean fermented sauces and pastes.)

I started the meal wondering how the dishes would come out.

Cold potato soup

The first dish of Kkweda's Spring and Jang course was a cold potato soup. It came with sweet shrimp and kohlrabi, so the texture was nice, and the nuttiness of the potato blended naturally with the aroma of wild chives. Even though it's served cold, the flavor was quite deep, and it gently opened up my appetite. A happy start from the very first course!!!

Barley salad

The barley salad is a finger food: springy barley, crunchy nuts and tangy green olives wrapped in endive.

It's made of healthy ingredients but wasn't bland at all, and the barley's texture went well with the acidity of the olives. It actually built up my anticipation for the next dish. If all health food tasted like this... haha

The standout dish at Kkweda: steamed abalone and eggplant

The steamed abalone and eggplant was the most memorable dish I had at Kkweda that day. A photo couldn't capture the real thing, so I filmed a video too.

Abalone, eggplant and sea urchin roe sit on a jelly-style sauce, and the chef explained that we should eat everything together in one bite. As he said, in a single bite the tangy flavor came first, and the chilled abalone was surprisingly tender.

Familiar ingredients, yet a combination of flavors I'd never experienced. By this point I was thinking, "Kkweda really knows how to cook." You can add extra sea urchin, and the add-on price is 7.0 (as written in the original).

Shrimp cannelloni

The shrimp cannelloni is cannelloni pasta tubes packed with shrimp filling. Grilled cheese and pea shoots go on top, and it comes with a sauce made with gochujang (Korean chili paste).

It felt like an Italian dish with a Korean savory depth added. The word "fusion" suits this dish best.

Clear chicken soup

I'm told Kkweda's clear chicken soup uses both chicken stock and abalone stock. As expected, the broth was deep and rich.

I liked the sweet yet clean broth, and the tender chicken thigh was satisfying too. Above all, the aroma of grilled green onion was really good. It felt like a little rest stop between the showier dishes.

How was the main dish, hanwoo striploin roast beef?

The main dish of Kkweda's Spring and Jang course is hanwoo (Korean beef) striploin roast beef. It came on a warm plate, so the beefy aroma felt even richer. It's served with mugwort doenjang (fermented soybean paste), asparagus, bangpung (coastal hog fennel) greens and whole-grain mustard, and it was fun eating each of them alongside the beef.

The meat itself is well seasoned, so it was delicious even without sauce. The aroma of beef spreads the more you chew... You can add truffle, and the add-on price is 10.0 (as written in the original).

Conger eel katsudon

The anago katsudon (conger eel cutlet rice bowl) is a meal dish of crispy fried conger eel topped with shishito peppers. The richness of fried eel and the sweet-salty glaze sauce blended well, and the aroma of the shishito peppers matched it really nicely.

It was a great closing meal that left me completely full!

Rare cheesecake

Kkweda's dessert is a rare cheesecake. It comes with apples pickled in white wine, which went surprisingly well with the soft cheesecake. It wasn't heavy, and I could finish the meal on a fresh note.

How much is Kkweda's dinner course, and what are the seating times?

Kkweda felt less like a meal to simply fill your stomach and more like a course that lets you enjoy the season.

Kkweda's dinner course is ₩75,000 per person for both the first and second seatings. The plating is really pretty, so every dish was a treat for the eyes first, and the chef's friendly explanations made the food more fun to taste. I was especially impressed by the use of seasonal ingredients, and I liked that healthy ingredients were used without losing out on flavor.

• First seating ₩75,000 (17:00–18:45)
• Second seating ₩75,000 (19:00–21:00)

When you say omakase, the price is the first worry that comes to mind, but considering the menu and atmosphere, Kkweda was a quite satisfying price. It makes me curious what the next season's course will be when the seasons change. If you're looking for a special dinner in Pangyo, give it a visit.