Women head chefs now helm 1 in 10 Michelin-starred restaurants in Korea
Women head chefs now lead 1 in 10 Michelin-starred restaurants in Korea, marking a symbolic crack in the industry’s long-standing glass ceiling even as stark gender gaps persist worldwide. The newly released Michelin Guide Seoul and Busan 2026 lists a record 46 starred restaurants, of which five are helmed by women, or about 10.9 percent, up from three out of 40 last year. That makes 2026 the first year, based on available data, that women have crossed the 10 percent threshold among Korea’s Michelin-starred chefs. At the global level, women remain badly outnumbered: A 2022 analysis of 2,286 Michelin-starred restaurants in 16 countries found only about 6 percent were led by women, with the figure still hovering between 5 and 10 percent in 2025. Michelin’s own leadership has publicly acknowledged the imbalance. “Where are the women? Too few women are leading kitchens, despite the fact that more and more of them are working in kitchens,” international director Gwendal Poullennec said at the 2024 French edition of the ceremony, calling it “a reality we deplore.” For every womanWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times
Quelle: Korea Times