Pastry chef
Yong-Joo PARK
- Discipline
- Pastry chef
Portrait of Yong-Joo PARK
i. Biography
From 2011 to 2018, Vanuatu Bakery was shaped under Yong-Joo PARK’s ownership, with dough handling and presentation treated as linked parts of the same trade. Born in a small countryside village in Sangju, Gyeongsangbuk-do, Korea, he built his reputation in South Korean pastry through artistic bread making, a discipline that demands precision, imagination, and strict control of time. His own philosophy stays plain: “The earth always goes around me... I will build happiness for myself.”
The Climb
Technique in pastry is built by repetition, and Yong-Joo PARK’s career shows that accumulation. At Toujours Bakery in Seoul, South Korea (1994–2003), the basic work of the bakery trade took hold. That sort of long stretch requires the daily discipline behind serious pastry work: early starts, exact measurement, and the repetition that turns method into habit. The next stage, Carolina Bakery and Lilienberg in Tokyo, Japan (2003–2005), placed Yong-Joo PARK in a different setting without changing the demands of the craft. Work across borders can sharpen rhythm and expose a baker to another tempo of production, and this period added to the technical base already in place. A return to Toujours Bakery in Cheonan, Chungcheongnam-do, Korea (2006–2011) brought that work back into a familiar house, where Yong-Joo PARK’s skills were further refined. Returning to the same bakery suggests continuity in practice, with earlier experience folded back into a more settled and exact command of the work. From there, Yong-Joo PARK moved into the role of Owner Chef at Vanuatu Bakery (2011–2018). In that position, the accumulated years of bakery work were brought into a single operation, where technique, timing, and authorship could be applied together.
Today
Artistic bread making remained his specialty, and the term points to bread used as a medium for form as much as flavor. In his own words: “I really wanted to participate in the individual round of the competition. Indeed, I want to make a good performance and show it to successors who will compete in the same contest.” The remark frames the work as both personal performance and a standard for others entering the same field.
Career - Baker, Toujours Bakery, Seoul, South Korea (1994–2003) - Baker, Carolina Bakery and Lilienberg, Tokyo, Japan (2003–2005) - Baker, Toujours Bakery, Cheonan, Chungcheongnam-do, Korea (2006–2011) - Owner Chef, Vanuatu Bakery (2011–2018)
Signature
Yong-Joo’s signature dishes include Dance and Musical Instruments of Hwang Jin-yi from Joseon Dynasty. The title points to bread as an interpretive form, with artistic bread making carrying references, memory, and structure into the finished piece.
In Their Words “I really wanted to participate in the individual round of the competition. Indeed, I want to make a good performance and show it to successors who will compete in the same contest.” “The earth always goes around me... I will build happiness for myself.”
Recognition
Yong-Joo’s honors include Coupe du Monde de la Boulangerie Champion (2016) and 2nd place for artistic bread making at the World Association of Chefs Societies (WACS) Congress (2012). These results place his work in international competition, where artistic bread making was judged as both technical and disciplined craft.
FAQ Where did Yong-Joo PARK work before? Yong-Joo PARK's earlier career included Toujours Bakery, Carolina Bakery and Lilienberg, and Toujours Bakery. What recognition has Yong-Joo PARK received? Coupe du Monde de la Boulangerie Champion (2016).
