Chef Louis Han : shaping contemporary Seoul cuisine
 
- 1 Michelin star chef in Singapore at NAE:UM
- #45 in Asia’s 50 Best Restaurant 2026
- South Korean chef
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Chef Louis Han was born and raised in Seoul. His childhood played out in this modern, cosmopolitan capital of South Korea, where global cultures intermingled, and international influences interwove with Korean heritage.
While his close-knit family kept him grounded, giving him a quiet confidence, this fast-paced environment spurred him to venture into the world beyond, into the culinary sphere. By age 14, Louis was cooking, and his first encounter with the professional kitchen was as a trainee at 17. At 20, he volunteered to serve as a chef with the United Nations Peacekeeping force in Lebanon, where he prepared international cuisines for military officers and dignitaries.
His first professional employment was at Marco Polo, a Mediterranean fine-dining restaurant at Grand Intercontinental Hotel, Seoul. Louis continued working in Korea until he relocated abroad to Abu Dhabi, to Circo, an award-winning Italian fine-dining restaurant.
In January 2016, Louis travelled to Singapore to join the opening team at currently two Michelin-starred Meta Restaurant as Sous Chef. Serving classic French-inspired cuisine with an Asian twist, he emerged as a regional finalist in the San Pellegrino Young Chef Competition, Southeast Asian leg. Close to two years later, he became Head Chef at modern bistro KIMME under Meta Restaurant Group, focusing on Innovative Modern Korean cuisine. During his tenure, the restaurant received multiple awards.
At the beginning of 2020, on the brink of turning 30 years old, a new challenge and the next chapter in life presented itself – opening his very own restaurant.
Looking to rediscover his roots and seek new insights and inspirations, he returned to South Korea after being away for 6 years. His natural curiosity and relentless enquiring spirit made him reconnect with Korean food culture and traditions. He worked as a Sous Chef at Mosu, a trendsetting three-Michelin-starred restaurant in Seoul, under the tutelage of acclaimed Chef Anh Sung Jae.
When launching his inaugural restaurant NAE:UM in 2021, Chef Louis Han drew from the multi-cultural experience of his work abroad and in South Korea to develop a personal style of cuisine that modelled itself on the culinary diversity of Seoul to embrace the international influences found in the city.
In August 2025, following a thoughtful reimagination of the restaurant, Chef Louis relaunched NAE:UM with an entirely upgraded menu focusing on contemporary Korean cuisine; marking a new story in his continued evolution. It is a natural culmination of his development as a restaurateur: from running NAE:UM over five years, to opening modern Korean steakhouse GU:UM and the private space HIDEAWAY by NAE:UM in 2024, all under the collective of the NAE:UM Group.
From revealing fragments of his life over time, Chef Louis now presents a deeply personal Contemporary Korean cuisine. Taking the form of a refined storybook instead of episodes, the menu for NAE:UM 2.0 lends a cohesive narrative of Chef Louis’ cuisine, which is definitively articulated and shaped by maturity. A blend of modern techniques and inventive culinary expression – though boundaryless and contemporary in spirit – is nevertheless humbly grounded in Korean flavours, ingredients, and personal memories.
All images are owned by NAE:UM, photographed by John Heng.
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