Daughter-in-law of luxury retail tycoon embarks on food tour in Seoul

Linh traveled to South Korea with her family.
The 31-year-old is a model and actress, and has participated in many fashion shows and starred in several TV series. She is married to Phillip Nguyen, 39, the third son of Johnathan Hanh Nguyen, chairman of IPPG, which is the exclusive distributor of over 100 luxury fashion brands in Vietnam, including Rolex, Cartier, and Dolce & Gabbana.

During the trip, she dined at Blue Roof Town Restaurant in Gangnam, renowned for its authentic grilled meats. Conveniently located near Sinsa subway station, the restaurant is a popular choice among local diners.
She ordered a selection of dishes, including grilled beef, soybean soup, and kimchi fried rice, according to her Instagram photos posted last week.

Her next stop was Kyochon Pilbang Restaurant in the vibrant Itaewon area, known for its chimaek—fried chicken served with beer—but with a modern twist.
The menu features a variety of fried chicken dishes, accompanied by signature sauces and perfectly paired with beer, showcasing a classic culinary tradition in Korea.

Her family also visited Deoil Grilled Eel Restaurant in Gangnam. In Korea, grilled eel is as popular as grilled meat, especially during the summer because it contains high-protein.
The eel is thinly sliced and marinated in a blend of sesame oil, soy sauce, and spices. It can be enjoyed in two ways: either grilled with salt or marinated in sesame oil and soy sauce before grilling.

Soy sauce-marinated seafood is always her family’s favorite dish when they visit South Korea in the summer.
During this trip, they stopped by Jinmi Sikdang Restaurant in the Mapo area recommended by the Michelin Guide.
The restaurant specializes in live crabs and soy sauce-marinated seafood. The freshest crabs, sourced daily from Korea’s west coast, are prepared with the chef’s special soy sauce. Due to its popularity, the restaurant is often fully booked, so reservations are essential.

Braised pork trotters are another must-try dish in Seoul.
Linh Rin was recommended to visit Manjok Ohyang Jokbal, a restaurant near City Hall that has been recognized by Michelin and included in the Bib Gourmand list for offering high-quality food at affordable prices.
Jokbal, or braised pork trotters, is slowly stewed for several hours here with a blend of spices including garlic, onion, ginger, soy sauce, honey, chili, and pepper, until the meat becomes tender and the skin turns crispy.
The dish is known for its rich sweetness and fragrant aroma of spices.

Deoki Sonmandu restaurant in Hongdae student area is where Linh’s family enjoyed hotpot and tofu dumplings, tofu pancakes. Korean dumplings are also called mandu, quite similar to wontons, with fillings usually made from meat, vegetables or seafood. When eaten, mandu is often dipped in chili sauce, black bean sauce or eaten with hotpot, rice, seaweed soup and kimchi.

Linh ordered a plate of nakji bokkeum (spicy stir-fried octopus). This dish combines the natural sweetness of fresh octopus with the distinctive spiciness of gochujang (Korean chili) sauce.
The spicy dish is perfect for the cold fall and winter weather, and is served with a Korean pancake called jeon.