THEWORLDS50BEST EXCLUSIVE 2025 /PART 5 /  Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2025: The 51-100 List Revealed / By Rachael Hogg / Publisher TheWorlds50Best

PART 5

No.57 Soigné – NEW ENTRY
Seoul
@soigneseoul

Chef Jun Lee has had a fascinating career – he trained at the Culinary Institute of America, worked at Thomas Keller’s Per Se, held positions in Toronto and New York, then returned to Seoul to launch a series of pop-ups, eventually opening Soigné in 2013 on the backs of their success.

In the intervening decade, Lee has implemented all he has learned to channel into this acclaimed destination, quite unlike anything else in the city.

No.56 Xin Rong Ji
Hong Kong

Xin Rong Ji Hong Kong is all about the cuisine and the produce of the Eastern coastal Taizhou region.

The quality of produce here is everything, with a bountiful selection of fresh seafood shipped in every day and used in dishes including sweet potato noodles with sea anemones or abalone with chopped pepper. Even the root vegetables are an event, with sweet potatoes sourced exclusively from Ninghai County.

Only red-centred potatoes are selected as suitable for the chefs at Xin Rong Ji, before being braised in brown sugar and served drizzled in honey.

No.55 Solbam
Seoul
@solbam_restaurant

Named after the hometown of chef-patron Tae-jun Eom, who returned to Seoul after training at the Culinary Institute of America in NYC, Solbam offers contemporary Korean fine dining that champions local, seasonal ingredients. Marrying classic cooking techniques with a thoughtful, modern approach, the tasting menu is preceded by the participatory DIY amuse bouche, with diners offered a selection of ingredients to mix themselves.

Taking its design inspiration from an art gallery, the pared-back, white-toned dining room allows guests to concentrate on the food and the comforting power of nature.

No.54 Born
Singapore
@restaurantborn

Chef Zor Tan is a former protégé of the legendary André Chiang. Born – housed in Jinrikisha Station, a historical landmark that dates back to 1903 – is Chef Tan’s inaugural independent restaurant, where he showcases his cuisine rooted in the founding philosophy of his childhood: contentment comes from having a full belly.

Blending contemporary French and Chinese cuisines, the tasting menu follows the chef’s nine guiding principles: Birth, Roots, Memories, Craft, Relationship, Vicissitudes, Time, Progress and Legacy.

No.53 Vea
Hong Kong
@vea_hk

“Chinese x French” is how chef Vicky Cheng describes his cuisine. Chinese dishes – ingredients from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China – are wielded using French techniques, which Chef Cheng honed while working at Restaurant Daniel in New York.

The marble counter fronting the open kitchen is the best place to enjoy the tasting menus, which always include the popular Chinese delicacy, roasted sea cucumber, prepared in various ways. The excellent service sets Vea apart, where the thorough dining service is underpinned by the ethos, One Team One Dream.

No.52 Mume
Taipei
@mume_taiwan

Set up in 2014 by chef trio Richie Lin, Long Xiong and Kai Ward, Mume has been run solely by Lin for the last few years. Born in Hong Kong, the chef moved to Sydney to work alongside Peter Gilmore at Quay, then to Noma in Copenhagen before deciding to move to Taiwan permanently. At Mume, he combines his international outlook, predilection for minimalist, Nordic-inspired plating and passion for Taiwanese produce all into one.

The chef’s philosophy is all about exploring underrated local ingredients and applying modern European techniques to create stunning, colourful dishes.

No.51 Born and Bred
Seoul
@bornandbredkorea

You’ve heard of wagyu, but how about hanwoo? To put it into perspective, wagyu is to Japan what hanwoo is to South Korea. On the menu at Born and Bred is a staggering succession of dishes – typically between 15 and 18 – that highlight the myriad ways hanwoo beef can be prepared, from cuts grilled over charcoal to beef pho, a katsu sando and even a Philly cheesesteak.

Born and Bred is located in a four-storey building that encompasses a butcher shop and casual café (first floor), an a la carte dining hall (second floor), and four private dining rooms (third floor). But the real show goes down in the basement-level speakeasy.