Korea Week: Four Hands Dinner With Sohyi Kim and Cristina Bowerman in Rome, Italy

Posted by Rowena Dumlao - Giardina 11/27/2017

Korea Week: Four Hands Dinner With Sohyi Kim and Cristina Bowerman in Rome, Italy

Two cultures, two renowned chefs and two cuisines in one kitchen. Korea and Italy meet together in the hands of Sohyi Kim, a South Korean chef and a former judge of the cooking show MasterChef Korea and Cristina Bowerman, a Michelin-starred Italian chef and President of the Associazione Ambasciatori del Gusto (Association of Ambassadors of Taste). A press dinner was held at Cristina Bowerman's restaurant in Rome, Romeo Chef & Baker last 24 October 2017 to celebrate the upcoming Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics as part of the week-long program Korea Week promoted by the Istituto Culturale Coreano (Korean Cultural Institute), in collaboration with the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Italy.

After the success of last year's Korea Week in Rome, the second edition is being held from 24 to 27 October 2017 in Rome as promoted by the Korean Cultural Institute. Inaugurated just last year in Rome, the institute is engaged in strengthening the relations and cooperation between Korea and the Italy. With the Korea Week, all the days are dedicated to the country, during which artists, culture experts and famous people from the Korean peninsula arrive in Italy to deepen each day a different theme and spread the knowledge, traditions and customs of Korea.

The expression of the culture and identity of the Korean people is undoubtedly its gastronomy. The ancient Korean culinary culture and its health properties are gaining more and more the interest in Italy and the whole world as evidenced during Expo 2015 that was held in Milan.

In light of this, the Korean Cultural Institute pays homage to Korea Week with a four hands dinner entitled K-Food Meets Italy, inspired by the ingredients of the Pyeongchang region, made by Cristina Bowerman and Sohyi Kim linking it to the upcoming winter Olympics that will be held in Pyeongchang.

During the K-Food Meets Italy press dinner, present were Soomyoung Lee, Director of the Korean Cultural Institute and Francesca Barberini, a TV host, author and food writer who hosted the night's event.

The role of the Korean Cultural Institute, body of the Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism of the Republic of Korea, is to promote Korean culture in Italy and to create a link between Korea and Italy. One of the fundamental elements of Korean culture is cooking, an expression of the territory and of our tradition. The K-Food Day, which is part of the Korean Culture Week, is an important occasion to make known our dishes, especially those from the region where Pyeongchang is located, the city that will host the 2018 Winter Olympics. The kitchen, like sports, creates connections between different peoples and at the same time allows us to make known the cultural heritage of our country and share the future of Korean culture, explains Soomyoung Lee, Director of the Korean Cultural Institute.

During the event, the food becomes an element of connection between the past, present and the future. In this regard Sohyi Kim gave life to a traditional dish from the past and linked it to the tradition of Gangwon, the region where the Olympic Winter and Paralympic Games will take place. Cristina Bowerman on the other hand has created a contemporary interpretation of the Korean cuisine. Together the chefs have created dishes together that moves towards the future, a projection on the kitchen of tomorrow.