The illusion that cheap cuts taste worse — the Hanwoo dining spot that wowed a Rothschild

We often judge food not by taste or smell, but by the price tag.

Expensive dishes naturally invite high expectations, and we tend to rate them favorably even when they do not quite match our palate. Cheap food, no matter how good, rarely earns the label of fine dining. Yet true gastronomy is not about price — it is ultimately about finding the flavor that brings you the greatest satisfaction and joy.

It is true that pricier food often delivers greater satisfaction. But that experience can harden into prejudice. Some cuts have real value yet go unappreciated simply because they are inexpensive. Gabrisal and galmaegissal — pork cuts that now fetch more than pork neck — were considered undesirable just two decades ago, dismissed purely because they were cheap.

Beef is no different. Koreans often say no part of a cow goes to waste, yet the cuts they actually reach for narrow down to tenderloin, sirloin, strip loin, salchisal and galbi. The rest sit untouched despite their lower prices. When people splurge on Hanwoo, they want the familiar.

Jeong Sang-won, founder of the internationally recognized Hanwoo dining restaurant Born & Bred, wants to change that perception. He believes that even cuts most diners have never heard of can hold genuine gastronomic value.

"I want to change how people think about the less popular cuts of beef," he said. "Koreans tend to stick to tenderloin, sirloin, strip loin and galbi. Everything else is being severely undervalued. Even the finest Hanwoo has a large portion that never gets the recognition it deserves in the market."

Boseopssal is a prime example. It comes from the round — the hip area of the cow — and takes its name from a traditional farming tool it resembles in shape. Hanwoo boseopssal runs about 4,000 to 7,000 won per 100 grams, up to six times cheaper than tenderloin. Low in fat but rich in texture, beefy aroma and depth of flavor, it holds its own as a steak cut.

"Boseopssal is clean and lean, with outstanding texture and flavor," Jeong said. "It is low in fat and high in protein, so it suits people watching their diet. Tenderloin and sirloin are excellent cuts, no question. But if you ask whether they deliver five or six times more satisfaction than boseopssal — which costs that much more — the honest answer is not easy. Price and taste do not always go hand in hand."

Jeong argues that a reappraisal of overlooked cuts would benefit not only consumer culture but also Hanwoo price stability.

"There are many reasons Hanwoo prices keep rising, but the concentration of demand on a handful of preferred cuts is a major one," he said. "The less popular cuts account for more than 60 percent of a single cow. Once their value is recognized, the price pressure on the popular cuts will naturally ease."

A new vision for Hanwoo, born in Majang-dong

This philosophy did not emerge overnight.

Jeong grew up in Majang-dong, Seoul — the heart of Korea's Hanwoo retail trade — and calls himself a "Majang-dong kid." The name Born & Bred reflects that identity directly: he was born and raised there.

His father entered the Hanwoo retail business in 1978. From childhood, Jeong was immersed in quality beef, and in his twenties he learned the trade from the ground up — attending pre-dawn auctions, boning and trimming carcasses, and working through distribution and management firsthand.

He founded Born & Bred to showcase the finest Hanwoo in the best possible way. He also wanted to transform Majang Market — long seen as rough and run-down — into a destination where gastronomy and tourism coexist, much like Tokyo's Tsukiji Market.

"Many people had no idea where to buy good beef," he said. "I wanted to create a space where people could experience the very best Hanwoo properly. I also hoped Majang Market could become more than a livestock market — a food destination people would seek out."

Today, Born & Bred showcases the range of Hanwoo through charcoal grilling, wood-fire cooking, straw-smoke techniques and yukhoe, among other preparations. It has established itself as a Hanwoo restaurant that draws world-renowned chefs, food enthusiasts and prominent figures from Korea and abroad.

The guest Jeong remembers most was someone he never expected.

"A foreign visitor came in wearing casual trousers and sneakers — I had no idea who he was," he said. "I later found out he was a member of the Rothschild family. After the meal, he told me it was the best food he had ever eaten in his life. That one sentence has stayed with me ever since."

What Hanwoo needs to become the world's finest beef

Jeong identifies "balance" as Hanwoo's greatest strength.

The harmony of umami, beefy aroma and texture — without an overpowering fat flavor — is what sets Hanwoo apart, he said. He also pushes back against the idea that heavy marbling automatically means superior beef.

"More marbling does not automatically mean better beef," he said. "Not every 1++ grade cut delivers the best flavor. What matters most is balance — the interplay of fat flavor, beefy aroma and texture."

He is convinced that Hanwoo's quality is already world-class. The problem, he said, is not the product but the system.

"When I compare Wagyu and Hanwoo, I think of Japanese football versus Korean football," he said. "Just as a team with talented players can still struggle because of the system, Hanwoo faces systemic limitations in the global market. Production costs are high, output is limited, and the distribution structure is complex. Above all, greater transparency in distribution is what Hanwoo needs to compete internationally."

He also stresses that globalizing Hanwoo is not simply a matter of exporting Korean-style charcoal grilling. During two years running a restaurant in Hong Kong, he incorporated Hanwoo into local cuisine and found a strong response.

A price is just a number the market assigns. Jeong wants to reveal the true value of Hanwoo that lies behind that number — to show that a single slice of boseopssal, a cut most people have never heard of, can move you more deeply than tenderloin, and to one day make the world's food lovers remember "Hanwoo" alongside "Wagyu" as the finest beef on earth. That is the future Jeong Sang-won, born and bred in Majang-dong, is working toward.

123@heraldcorp.com