KT Gwanghwamun Building ‘The Plaza Dining’
Hanwha Food Tech · Santori First collaboration
Pablo Grill & Bar VIP session
Taste with three cups on seven plates
사진 확대 Hibiki Japan’s Harmony (left) and Hibiki 21 years are on display at The Plaza Dining Pablo Grill & Bar Wine Tower in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Hanwha Food Tech will hold the “Hibiki Pairing Promotion” until the 30th of next month in partnership with Santori Global Spirits.
“The Plaza Dining” on the 15th floor of the West of KT Gwanghwamun Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, as the sun sets on the 8th of this month. The sky near Gyeongbokgung Palace and Bukaksan Mountain turned red over the Pablo Grill & Bar window. In the cylindrical wine tower inside the store, more than 1,000 kinds of wine lay in layers. In the middle of it stood two bottles of amber whiskey instead of wine. Santori’s ‘Hibiki Japanes Harmony’ and ‘Hibiki 21 years’.
On this day, a dinner featuring Hibiki was held at Pablo Grill & Bar. It was a place where Hanwha Food Tech announced its whiskey promotion “Harmony in the Plaza Dining” in partnership with Santori Global Spirits for the first time. Three whiskey and two cocktails were on the table one after the other while seven dishes of cooking continued.
Hibiki (響) means “woolim” in Japanese. It is a blended whiskey released by Santori in 1989 and is made by mixing malt and grain undiluted solutions from Yamazaki, Hakushu, and Chita distilleries. The 24 cotton-cut bottle symbolizes 24 hours a day and 24 seasons of the traditional Japanese calendar. Every glass on the table on that day had the word “響” stamped on it.
Hibiki cocktail completed at the bartender’s fingertips
사진 확대 Park Yong-woo, general bartender of Alice Cheongdam, is putting herb leaves with tweezers on a cocktail above the bart. At the VIP session, two cocktails made of Hibiki Japan’s harmonies by a bartender Park came out in the middle of the course. Hanwha Food Tech Co., Ltd
The cocktail was handled by Alice Cheongdam’s general bartender Park Yong-woo. Alice Cheongdam is ranked 13th in Asia’s 50 Best Bar in 2025 and 2026. The bartender dragged the bartender to the table and finished the cup in front of the customer. With a jigger, Hibiki Harmony was poured into an ash ice cup and filled with carbonated water. After inserting a leaf with a pair of tweezers, a sprayer containing fragrance once sprayed, a fine mist landed on the glass. There were two cocktails on this day. One was eucalyptus, coriander seeds, and citron salt to preserve the freshness of hibiki harmonies. The other was a mixture of raspberries, red wine, tomatoes, and apricots, which gave it a wine-like red hue.
Three cups on seven plates…Whiskey Depends on Course
사진 확대 The employee is pouring the sauce over the Korean beef tenderloin steak. Next to it is a cup of Hibiki whisky and a Hibiki Japanese Harmony Highball. Korean beef tenderloin steak is the main dish among the seven course dishes from the VIP session. Hanwha Food Tech Co., Ltd
The first plate was potato roastie. A thin prosciutto was layered like a petal over a Swiss-style potato pancake that was ground and golden. The burrata salad was eye-catching from the color. Orange pieces and olives were embedded between red, yellow, and dark blue tomatoes, and a white burrata sat brightly in the middle. This was followed by raw oysters on ice, seafood carpachos with capers and dill on thinly sliced whitefish, and charquiteri plates with pistachio-embedded terins and prosciutto. The main Korean beef tenderloin steak was finished by the staff tilting the sauce bowl in front of the table. On the dessert ‘nightcap tiramisu’, the word ‘PAVLO’ was stamped white through cocoa powder.
Whisky was served one glass at a time in line with the course. Hibiki Harmony first came up with the scent of flowers and fruits that reminded me of roses and lychees. Then, honey-like sweetness and sugar-boiled orange peel taste spread smoothly. It went well with fresh burrata salad and carpachos. Yamazaki 12 years ago overlapped peach and pineapple scents with a smooth texture resembling coconut and butter. At the end, ginger and cinnamon remained slightly pungent, supporting the heavy juices of Korean beef tenderloin. The 21st year of Hibiki was darker in color from the time it was poured into the glass. Ripe bananas, blackberries, honeycomb honey, dried apricots, and white sweet aroma spread one after the other behind the caramel scent. The unique scent of Japanese oak Mizunara remained long, and the course was closed with the bitter taste of tiramisu.
From Highball to Bottle Set…6 locations to be sold by Nov. 30
사진 확대 Whisky Flight is placed in The Plaza Dining Pablo Grill & Bar. From left are Hibiki Japan’s Harmony, Yamazaki 12 years, and Hibiki 21 years. You can taste three cups at the three Plaza Dining stores for 120,000 won. Hanwha Food Tech Co., Ltd
Much of the dinner on this day can be tasted by anyone during the promotion period. The promotion runs until the 30th of next month. Six stores will participate, including The Plaza Dining (Pablo Grill & Bar, Pablo Tepan, Dowon, S), 63 Skyline Dining (Shuchiku, Walking on the Cloud), and 63 Buffet Pavilion The Premium. All six places sell Hibiki Japan’s Harmony Highball for 25,000 won.
An official from Hanwha Food Tech said, “We have planned to enjoy Santori Global Spirits’ premium whiskey and restaurant-specific characteristics in various ways. Starting with this promotion, we will continue to introduce various gourmet contents.” If you want to spend an autumn evening slowly with a glass of whiskey with the night view of Gwanghwamun, it is worth stopping by. Reservations can be made at the catch table.
The six store-specific programs, including The Plaza Dining (Pablo Grill & Bar, Pablo Tepan, Dowon, S), 63 Skyline Dining (Shuchiku, Walking on the Cloud), and 63 Buffet Pavilion The Premium, are as follows. ▲Wiskey Flight: You can drink three cups of Hibiki Harmony, Yamazaki 12 years, and Hibiki 21 years for 120,000 won at the three Plaza Dining stores. Pablo Grill & Bar also sells Hibiki Harmony cocktail (30,000 won) separately. ▲Free Flow: Pablo Grill & Bar holds a “Free Flow Night” every Tuesday for 90 minutes from 8 p.m. to indulge in hibiki harmonies. Potato roasti and burrata salad come together and cost 150,000 won per person. Reservations are only accepted at the catch table. 63 Buffet Pavilion The Premium gives you a Hibiki Highball when you order “Signature Liquor Free Flow.” ▲Bottle set: A bottle of whiskey tied to the store’s signature menu. Pablo Grill & Bar added oyster dishes “Stella Maris,” seafood carpacho, and charqueteri, while Dowon and S added Peking duck. It starts at 420,000 won. ▲Shuchiku Pairing Course: Four types of whiskey, including Hibiki Harmony, Hakushu Distillery Reserve, Yamazaki 12 years, and Hibiki 21 years, were paired with 10 types of autumn seasonal Japanese food. It’s 380,000 won. The “SUNTORY Discovery Flight,” which compares three cups of Hibiki, Hakushu, and Yamazaki, costs 65,000 won. ▲Four Hands Dinner: Park bartender and Kim Hyung-wook, 63 Skyline Dining General sommelier will be held together at Walking on the Cloud in Building 63 on the 27th. 63 Skyline Dining is the signature menu of four restaurants, and six glasses of cocktail and wine are accompanied on the course. It’s 180,000 won per person.