In Verdun, GIWA delivers Korean cuisine with fine-dining finesse and a willingness to colour outside the lines. Chef Alex Woo leads a tight kitchen that moves confidently between comfort and craft—from the sot-bap, a stone pot rice dish steeped in mushroom-kombu broth and finished with golden nu-roong-ji, to delicate small plates like yukhwe with pickled pear and crisp seaweed chips.

Housemade banchan and ferments round out the savoury side, while dessert pushes the envelope: the Hodumaru pairs chocolate-gochujang mousse with brownie texture and maple ice cream, turning the familiar into something unexpected. It’s quietly ambitious, deeply personal, and very much worth the trip.