JeongIn Hwang

The Path

Large-hotel kitchen discipline set an early professional baseline through a position at Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong in Hong Kong, where Jeongln Hwang worked inside the pace, hierarchy, and standards of a major operation. The later move to London placed that discipline in a different register: the Senior Sous Chef role at Sketch London (from 2015) required range, pressure management, and service control. Fine-dining systems sharpened the work on the West Coast. As Executive Sous Chef at Benu (from 2016), Hwang entered a kitchen culture built around calibration and consistency. That same year, the Sous Chef role at In situ SFMOMA San Francisco Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco (from 2016) added a concept-driven setting where the plate still had to land with precision. Korean charcoal barbecue and home-cooking references now carry that training at San Ho Won, where Jeongln Hwang has been Chef de cuisine since 2021. The restaurant depends on familiar textures and direct flavors, but the craft frame is controlled: fire management, seasoning, prep systems, and repeatability are treated as primary work.

The Work Today

“Although San Ho Won is a casual dining setting, our kitchen work maintains a high level of refinement,” Hwang says. That distinction matters in production. Casual dining does not reduce the demands on mise en place, seasoning, timing, or pass consistency. At San Ho Won, refinement is visible in calibration, layering, and repetition: the labor required to make food read as generous while keeping it inside standard. Kimchi Pozole is named among the restaurant’s signature dishes, with meticulous techniques behind it. The dish brings fermentation, heat, depth, and comfort into a controlled register. Egg Soufflé, another signature dish discussed by Hwang, uses a different kind of control: softness held by structure, familiarity supported by careful handling. The systems learned at Benu now support consistency at San Ho Won. Dish calibration, service repeatability, and disciplined prep serve Korean home cooking rather than replacing it. Korean charcoal barbecue becomes a practical test of timing, fire, seasoning, and restraint. The same discipline extends to galbi, osam bulgogi, and Milmyeon: direct dishes that still require precision at each pass. The work is not a departure from home cooking; it is a tightened version of it. Warmth remains, but the frame is cleaner. Flavor stays generous, but execution is measured. Technique is used so the table recognizes the food, not so the kitchen advertises itself.

Signature

Jeongln's signature dishes include Kimchi Pozole, Egg Soufflé, galbi, osam bulgogi, and Milmyeon.

In Their Words “The techniques and systems I learned at Benu have been instrumental in building a strong foundation for our cuisine and restaurant here at San Ho Won.” “Although San Ho Won is a casual dining setting, our kitchen work maintains a high level of refinement.”

Acclaim

Jeongln Hwang has received MICHELIN Guide — One MICHELIN Star for San Ho Won. Jeongln's honors include One MICHELIN Star for San Ho Won (2022).