On a Saturday night in April 2024, viewers of MBC's *Omniscient Interfering View* watched a curious pairing take shape around a Jongno dining table. On one side sat model Shin Hyeon-ji — a fixture of overseas runways — with her close friends and fellow international models Ahn Jae-hyung and Park Tae-min. On the other, in an outfit engineered to mirror Shin Hyeon-ji's own signature styling, sat comedian Shin Gi-ru, introduced by the model with unmistakable affection as a kind of comet of the modelling world.
The restaurant they had chosen for the reunion was KUT SEOUL, a Hanwoo omakase tucked onto the third floor of a low tower on Jongno, opposite the southern end of Insadong-gil. The scene became one of the episode's most-shared moments: the small-eating models trying to keep pace with Shin Gi-ru's cheerful, encyclopedic enthusiasm for every plate, and Shin Hyeon-ji quietly dividing a single spoon of caviar-topped beef tartare into several dainty bites while her guest of honour dispatched hers in one.
What follows is a considered look at the meal itself — what the four guests were actually served, why those particular cuts matter, and how to plan a visit of your own to the same third-floor dining room in Jongno.
Which episode was it, and when did it air?
The segment aired on 20 April 2024, in episode 295 of MBC's *Omniscient Interfering View* (전지적 참견 시점), the Saturday-night observational programme that has followed celebrities and their managers since 2018. The series is distributed and syndicated by MBC on Saturdays at 11:05 pm (KST) since 10 March 2018.
The day's storyline followed Shin Hyeon-ji through a fashion shoot before she met Ahn Jae-hyung and Park Tae-min and headed to the restaurant where Shin Gi-ru was waiting. Episode 295 featured world-renowned top model Shin Hyeon-ji meeting comedian Shin Gi-ru together with her close male model colleagues; after a photoshoot, Shin Hyeon-ji met fellow models Ahn Jae-hyung and Park Tae-min, and the three then travelled to the restaurant where Shin Gi-ru was waiting, with Shin Hyeon-ji introducing him as a kind of comet of the modelling world.
Much of the segment's humour came from the mismatch of appetites at the table. As time went on, not only Shin Hyeon-ji but also Ahn Jae-hyung and Park Tae-min were won over by Shin Gi-ru, and among the light-eating models her steady Hanwoo omakase eating scene drew the biggest laughs.
Where did they film — and how do you get there?
The restaurant is KUT SEOUL, a Hanwoo omakase in Jongno-gu. The venue in Jongno is called KUT, a Hanwoo omakase restaurant that uses 1++ Hanwoo — specifically No. 9 — and serves a Hanwoo course cuisine matured for four weeks to deepen its umami. The Korean press reporting on the episode confirmed both the location and the format. The Hanwoo omakase restaurant is located in Seoul's Jongno-gu.
3F Hanol Tower, 96 Jongno — 3 minutes from Jongno 3-ga Station (Lines 1·3·5) Exit 15 or Jonggak Station (Line 1) Exit 4; next to Tapgol Park; 20–25 minutes on foot from Gyeongbokgung.
Lunch 11:30–15:00 (last order 14:30), dinner 17:30–22:00 (last order 19:30), closed Tuesdays.
KUT SEOUL is a 3-minute walk from Jongno 3-ga Station (Lines 1·3·5) Exit 15 — on weekday lunches its 8-dish ₩69,000 Bar course runs 80 minutes at the counter, reservation only.
What did Shin Hyeon-ji and Shin Gi-ru actually eat?
The cuts served in the episode line up precisely with the beef that KUT SEOUL cellars for its longer courses. The Hanwoo cuts that day were Châteaubriand (tenderloin), striploin, ribeye chuck flap, skirt and chuck flap tail. These are the same five cuts the kitchen builds its upper courses around — a spectrum that moves from the leanest, most delicate tenderloin through progressively richer, more marbled sections of the loin and belly.
Two dishes in particular carried the on-screen theatre. The first was a beef tartare crowned with caviar, which produced the episode's most-quoted comic beat: while Shin Hyeon-ji scooped small spoonfuls of the caviar-topped tartare and spread them across several bites, Shin Gi-ru finished hers in a single spoon, drawing big laughs.
The second was the course's live lobster sashimi. Lobster sashimi is unusual on its own, but topped with caviar it startled even those watching; everyone who tasted it opened their eyes wide in surprise at the flavour. On KUT SEOUL's current menu, that particular presentation — live lobster sashimi with caviar and gold flake — is a signature of the R KUT (Royal Course), a fifteen-dish tasting served in the private rooms only.
Which course does this correspond to today?
The menu shown on the episode is not sold as a fixed "celebrity set," but the composition — five named Hanwoo cuts, plus the caviar-topped lobster sashimi — maps to the two most elaborate courses KUT SEOUL currently offers.
| Course | Dishes | Price | Where it's served |
|---|---|---|---|
| P KUT (Posh Course) | 11 | ₩175,000 | Counter, or private rooms at weekday lunch only |
| S KUT (Signature Course) | 13 | ₩210,000 | Private rooms only |
| R KUT (Royal Course) | 15 | ₩280,000 | Private rooms only |
The live-lobster-with-caviar moment that anchored the broadcast belongs to the R KUT. If you're deciding between the tiers, our first-timer's guide to choosing a Hanwoo omakase course walks through the differences dish by dish.
KUT SEOUL: Bar 8 dishes ₩69,000 (weekday lunch, counter only, 80 min) · Posh 11 ₩175,000 · Signature 13 ₩210,000 · Royal 15 ₩280,000 · Kids ₩45,000 (ages 7 and under). Signature and Royal are private-room only; Posh is also served in a private room at weekday lunch (counter at weekday dinner and on weekends and holidays).
What is BMS No. 9 Hanwoo, and why does the ageing matter?
Hanwoo — Korea's indigenous cattle — is graded under a national system administered by the Korea Institute for Animal Products Quality Evaluation. Since December 2019 the top grade, 1++, has been broken down further by a Beef Marbling Score of 7, 8 or 9, with the number required to appear alongside the grade. KUT SEOUL uses only BMS No. 9, the highest of those three bands and the most tightly marbled Hanwoo the system recognises.
What travellers often miss is what the restaurant does *after* buying the meat. Every cut at KUT SEOUL is vacuum-aged for four weeks in a dedicated refrigerator — a wet-ageing method, not a dry-ageing one. Wet ageing preserves the moisture in intensely marbled beef and lets the enzymes tenderise the muscle without the crust and shrinkage of dry ageing. For an in-depth explanation, see our note on why KUT SEOUL wet-ages rather than dry-ages its Hanwoo.
BMS No. 9 Hanwoo, vacuum (wet) aged four weeks — not dry-aged. Grades run 3/2/1/1+/1++; since December 2019, 1++ covers marbling scores 7–9 and the number is displayed. KUT serves No. 9 only.
Can I book the same room they filmed in?
The show filmed the four guests in one of KUT SEOUL's five private rooms — the format used for larger, more elaborate courses and for any table with children under eight. The restaurant does not identify specific rooms as "celebrity rooms," and staff will not confirm which was used on which broadcast. What you can book is the same category of experience: a closed door, a full course, and roughly three hours behind it.
Reservation only, through CatchTable or Naver. Deposit is 100% of the order; cancellation is free two days before, 50% one day before, none on the day.
If you're weighing a room against the eight-seat chef's counter, our guide to counter seats versus private rooms at KUT SEOUL explains what each format does well and which courses you can order in each. Note in particular that the R KUT (Royal Course) — the one with the on-screen lobster sashimi — is served only in the private rooms.
How do I actually recreate this dinner?
A short checklist for travellers hoping to eat what Shin Hyeon-ji and Shin Gi-ru ate:
- Book the R KUT (Royal Course) if the live lobster sashimi with caviar and gold flake is the dish you want on the table.
- Reserve a private room for a party of two or more; the Royal is not offered at the counter.
- If your group is larger — up to twelve — a single private room can accommodate you; the rooms are not joined together.
- For a first visit that keeps the same spirit at a lower spend, the S KUT (Signature Course) delivers Châteaubriand and Avruga caviar in a room; the P KUT (Posh Course) covers the tenderloin-to-striploin spectrum from the counter.
Reservations for all of the above go through the KUT SEOUL reservation page and its CatchTable and Naver Booking listings. Requests for allergies or a lettered dessert plate should be entered in the reservation notes by the day before your visit.
A quiet room in a noisy district
The reason Shin Hyeon-ji chose this particular restaurant to reunite with Shin Gi-ru is easy to guess once you've eaten there. Jongno is one of Seoul's busiest streets, and the third floor of Hanol Tower is a deliberate remove from it — a set of windowed rooms above the pavement, quiet enough that a caviar-topped tartare, a live lobster sashimi and a comedian's monologue can each land on their own terms.
If that appeals — a considered Hanwoo omakase in a room that a Saturday-night camera crew was willing to disappear into for an hour — the way to secure it is the same for every guest: pick a course, pick a room, and book ahead.
