A renowned fine-dining restaurant in Seoul and its operator have been indicted for using ants — banned as a food ingredient in Korea — to make desserts, generating more than 100 million won in sales from the menu item alone. The restaurant holds two stars in the Michelin Guide.
The Seoul Western District Prosecutors' Office said Wednesday that it had indicted the restaurant's operating company and its chief executive, identified only as A, on October 29 without detention on charges of violating the Food Sanitation Act.
A and others are accused of selling a dessert menu featuring ants — a species not approved for human consumption — approximately 12,200 times over about four years starting in 2021, earning more than 120 million won in revenue.
The menu in question was served as a sherbet (frozen dessert) made from sikhye, a traditional Korean sweet rice beverage, with ants sprinkled on top according to customer preference. The restaurant, located in Seoul's Gangnam district, received two stars in this year's Michelin Guide.
Online reviews claimed that "the chef personally foraged the ants from Mount Jiri," but prosecutors concluded that the ants actually used had been imported from Thailand and the United States.
Under the current Food Sanitation Act, only 10 species of insects are approved for human consumption in Korea. Ants are not on the list.
Health authorities reportedly informed prosecutors that heavy metal levels detected in the ants used in the dessert were up to 55 times higher than those found in other edible insects.
The restaurant reportedly stated during the investigation that the chef had previously prepared dishes using the acidity of ants while working in the United States and Europe, and was unaware that the practice was illegal in Korea.
