Seoul’s Culinary Bureaucracy Catches Up with Michelin-Starred Ants

When modern gastronomy collides with state administration, even a handful of dried insects can precipitate a courtroom drama. In Seoul's affluent Gangnam district, the celebrated two-Michelin-star establishment Evett has learned this lesson at considerable financial cost. The Western District Court in Seoul imposed a 10 million won fine on the operating company and a 15 million won fine on its chief executive, Ginny Kim, following a prosecution that originally sought a prison sentence.

The crime in question was not a failure of standard hygiene, but a breach of South Korea's rigid dietary permitted list. Between April 2021 and January 2025, the restaurant served imported dried ants from Thailand and the United States atop a sorbet crafted from sikhye, a traditional sweet rice drink. State regulators at the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety discovered the practice after scouring social media entries and food blogs—a modern form of enforcement where instagrammable plating doubles as evidence of regulatory transgression.

South Korean law maintains an explicit register of permissible culinary insects, restricting legal consumption to just ten species, including silkworm pupae and grasshoppers. Anything outside this narrow canon requires temporary clearance from health authorities—an administrative step Evett omitted. While foreign establishments in Denmark, the United Kingdom, and Australia regularly employ ants to offer acid and texture, local magistrates proved unmoved by international trends.

Presiding judge Lee Se-chang noted that the offense was far from light, pointing out that testing revealed heavy metal concentrations in the imported ants exceeding permitted thresholds. The court also highlighted how long the dish remained on the 15-course menu and its role in promotional efforts. Still, prosecutors' demands for a one-year prison term were mitigated by the executive's lack of prior infractions, full admission of wrongdoing, and prompt removal of the dish.

The legal proceedings also sparked an unusual mathematical debate over insect intake. Prosecutors claimed that over 12,000 patrons had consumed nearly 49,000 ants, generating roughly 120 million won in revenue. Defense counsel countered that roughly 40 percent of diners declined the garnishes when offered. While street vendors across the country freely hawk steamed silkworm pupae to nostalgic passersby, the legal apparatus made clear that novel crunch in fine dining must first pass through official stamps and regulatory channels.

Written by Sandy van Dongen sandy.vandongen@alpineweekly.com