3-Michelin star Benu chef Corey Lee partners Hyundai to open restaurant in Singapore

STAR Korean-American chef Corey Lee of San Francisco’s Benu restaurant is the latest in a growing influx of major culinary names setting up shop in Singapore, but with a new twist. Instead of taking on local partners to open a hip eatery in the likes of Dempsey or Amoy Street, he’s headed to Jurong – where he is tied up with motoring giant Hyundai to serve traditional Korean cuisine in its new research and production facility.

Set to open in June at Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Centre Singapore (HMGICS), the new restaurant, named Na Oh (“moving from inside out” in Korean) also marks the South-east Asian debut of Lee, whose restaurant is regularly listed among the top restaurants in the city.

In 2015, he became the first Korean chef to achieve three Michelin stars, long before Korean food became a global phenomenon. Currently, there is only one other Korean chef helming a three-starred restaurant – Sung Anh of Mosul in Seoul.