In the heart of Singapore, NA:EUM opened its doors in 2021 under the vision of Chef Louis Han, and quickly earned a reputation as one of the city’s standout contemporary Korean fine dining restaurants. The name NA:EUM translates to “fragrance that evokes memories,” perfectly capturing the essence of the dining experience.
Chef Louis Han went to culinary school in Seoul, spent a year with the United Nations in Lebanon to cook for dignitaries, and continued his culinary career in Seoul, Abu Dhabi, and then Singapore. Before starting NAE:UM, he worked as a Sous Chef at MOSU Seoul under Chef Anh Sung Jae.
NA:EUM earned its first Michelin star in 2022 and has maintained this distinction in the Michelin Guide Singapore through 2025. In 2025, the restaurant was featured in Tatler Best "Best Restaurants Singapore" and had previously ranked among Tatler Dining Awards "Top 20" in 2024. Additionally, it appeared on the extended list of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants in 2024, placing at number 73. Chef Louis Han was honored with the Michelin Guide Singapore "Young Chef Award" in 2022.
The following are excerpts from an email interview with Chef Louis Han on Dec 22 and Jan 1, discussing NA:EUM and his creative culinary creations.
1. How did your path lead to the creation of NAE:UM in Singapore?
After working in Singapore for about 4-5 years, I thought about going back to live permanently in Seoul, thus my work experience at MOSU. However at the time I met my wife, who was Singapore-based, and we decided to settle down in Singapore instead. I was contemplating the next stage to my career and although it was in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, I decided to take the risk to open my own restaurant.
2. Which dishes best represent your culinary philosophy right now?
Having built NAE:UM from scratch, the entire restaurant is a very personal space to me, including each of the dishes I have created. When my diners come to NAE:UM, we present them with a storybook that is all about NAE:UM and me. So, it is difficult for me to choose a particular dish, I would say each dish within the menu speaks for a strong influence and memory to me.
3. Where do you usually begin when creating a new menu?
It is a very organic process centered around an impactful memory and season, for example a summer barbecue at my grandmother's front yard. Channeling that memory, I would create the dish whose flavors would bring me back to that time, while at the same time elevating the dish with ideas I've picked up along the way.
4. Are there dishes that hold personal memories for you?
One of our most popular dishes is the "memilmyeon," a cold noodles dish inspired by the memory of the noodles my mother would cook every Sunday. As a working mother, she already spent her weekdays working for the family, and I feel very touched that she still puts in the effort to cook my favorite noodles during her free time.
5. In what ways has Singapore influenced the flavors or style of your cuisine?
I strive to cook modern Korean dishes which you can only taste at my restaurant, that is, a cuisine that is still very strongly Korean at the root but with influences from my stay in Singapore. An example of this is my new creation the "jambu dongchimi," using a Southeast Asian fruit to make a familiar Korean flavor that little bit more mysterious.
6. Do you take inspiration from old Korean recipes and adapt them?
I am deeply influenced by my flavor buds as a Korean, but I do not have any old Korean recipes to go on. Observing my grandmother cook, she goes purely on "son-mat" (손맛), cooking by feel rather than a strict recipe. Thus in creating dishes inspired by her cooking or other dishes, I come up with my own recipes. There are general fermentation rules to make kimchi, for example, which cannot be followed in Singapore due to the different climate.
7. What are your goals?
I would love to introduce more international diners to Korean cuisine that has been modernized and globalized. More than anything, I want to welcome guests to the home I built from scratch, NAE:UM, and hope they enjoy their experience fully regardless of their history with Korean cuisine, whether they are familiar, or completely new to it.
NA:EUM harmonizes contemporary Korean cuisine with modern Western techniques and Korean heritage flavors, earning praise in Singapore’s fine dining scene.
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