SMT House

SMT House (stylized as SMT HOUSE), commonly referred to as SMT Seoul, is a restaurant in Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, owned by SM F&B Development, a subsidiary of SM Entertainment. The restaurant has five stories, each of which has different style and concept. The first and second floors offer a space for lunch, deserts and café in the daytime and for Spanish tapas restaurant at night. On the 3rd and 4th floors (which require reservations) diners can order a one course specialty called, "Seoul Tapas Style."

SMT House
SMT Seoul building at night
Restaurant information
Established	January 27, 2016 (2016-01-27)
Owner(s)	SM F&B Development
Street address	125-24, Cheongdam-dong (58, Apgujeong-ro 79-gil)
City	Gangnam District, Seoul
Country	South Korea
Coordinates	37.5253°N 127.0520°E / 37.5253; 127.0520

History

SMT Seoul marks SM Entertainment's third endeavor at entering the food market. Previously, the company opened the Korean restaurant project ETable in Seoul but closed its doors in 2011 and Podonamu in Tokyo. In 2009, SM ventured into opening a pub in collaboration with the local hamburger joint Kraze, the Chi Mc, but the project failed. A spokesperson from SM stated the company had already possessed the know-how with the franchise after having several test-runs previously in the restaurant business.^[1][2] On January 19, 2016, SM announced opening a multi-dining space named SMT Seoul under SM F&B Development on January 21.^[3] The complex dining space is a casual dining and fine dining restaurant based on tapas menus, allowing visitors to experience a "different dining culture".^[4]

At 6 PM of January 27, 2016, SM Entertainment Group held a grand opening party in SMT Seoul located at Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. It marked the beginning of the multi-dining space business.^[5][6] Executives from SM attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening, including executive producer Lee Soo-man, Kim Young-min, Kim Min-jong, Kangta, and BoA.^[7] In addition, artists from SM, including Super Junior, Girls' Generation, Exo, and Red Velvet, along with celebrities from SM Culture & Contents, attended the event.^[8] SM also announced its plan to open restaurant branches such as SMT Tokyo in Japan and SMT LA in the United States.^[9]

Design

Each floor consists of a space with a particular concept; The Playground on the first and second floors operates as a lunch and dessert café in the morning and a casual tapas restaurant in the evening.^[10] After 10 PM KST (UTC+09:00) on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, the space will transform into a DJ-invited lounge. It is expected that it "satisfies both the mouth and the eyes" as it transforms into an "inviting lounge to provide unique pleasure", as well as a space to see various contents such as ceiling media images and SM Entertainment artists' holograms.^[11] The Penthouse on the third and fourth floors, which is operated on a pre-booking basis, employs the concept of Seoul Style Tapas to the course menu. The space will be showing a "unique dining culture" where visitors can taste menus from around the world such as Korean, Chinese, Japanese, and Western food when ordering the course.^[12] The fifth floor is composed of the Vertical Garden, allowing visitors to relax in the city center while adding variety.^[13] In addition, the restaurant introduces the "highest level" of audio & media sound facilities and soundproofing facilities according to the function of the space by floor, an oxygen generator and a water vein breaker, and a heating and cooling system.^[14] In winter, rooms use the ondol principle and provide a cool space without air conditioning, similar to a wine cellar cave in a winery in summer.^[15]

Accolades

Name of publisher, year listed, and award of SMT House

Publisher	Year	Award	Ref.
Wine Spectator	2017	Award of Excellence	[16]
	2018		[17]

References

1. Jackson, Julie (May 10, 2016). "[Hallyu Power] K-pop powerhouses looking to take a bite out of culinary world". The Korea Herald. Archived from the original on May 11, 2016. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
2. Song, Ji-won (September 12, 2016). "SM Entertainment to launch dining venue in Tokyo". The Korea Herald. Archived from the original on September 12, 2016. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
3. Chun, Seol-hwa (January 19, 2016). [HD] SM엔터테인먼트 복합외식공간 ‘SMT SEOUL’ 오는 21일 오픈..한류 외식 문화 공간 [SMT SEOUL, A Multi-Dining Space for SM Entertainment, To Open on the 21st..Hallyu Food Culture Space]. Star Daily News (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 18, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
4. Lee, Ji-seok (January 19, 2016). SM엔터테인먼트 복합외식공간 'SMT SEOUL' 오는 21일 오픈 [Multi-Dining Space for SM Entertainment 'SMT SEOUL' to Open on the 21st]. Sports Seoul (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 18, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
5. Kim, Min-ji (January 28, 2016). SM, 복합외식공간 사업 나섰다 '청담동에 SMT SEOUL 오픈' 日·美도 계획중 [SM, Launches Multi-Dining Space Business 'Opening SMT SEOUL in Cheongdam-dong' Japan·US are Also Planned]. Seoul En (in Korean). Archived from the original on February 9, 2016. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
6. Cho, Hyun-woo (January 28, 2021). 참 장사 잘하는 SM…'SMT 서울' 열고 외식사업 뛰어들었다 [SM is Very Good at Business…Opened 'SMT Seoul' and Jumped into the Restaurant Business]. Kuki News (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 19, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
7. Kwon, Soo-bin (January 28, 2016). "Attending the SMT Seoul Grand Opening Party, Kangta·BoA and Others" SMT 서울 그랜드 오프닝 파티, 강타·보아 등 참석. News1 (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 19, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
8. Lee, Eun-jung (January 28, 2016). SM, 청담동에 복합외식공간 'SMT 서울' 열어…"日·美도 계획" [SM Opens 'SMT Seoul' in Cheongdam-dong…"Plans for Japan·US"]. Yonhap News Agency (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 19, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
9. Lee, Ji-seok (January 28, 2016). SM엔터테인먼트 복합외식공간 'SMT SEOUL', 27일 그랜드 오프닝 파티 개최 [A Multi-Dining Space for SM Entertainment 'SMT SEOUL', Hosts a Grand Opening Party on the 27th]. Sports Seoul (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 19, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
10. Hong, Dong-hee (January 19, 2016). SM, 복합외식공간 'SMT서울' 21일 오픈 [SM, To Open Multi-Food Space 'SMT Seoul' on the 21st]. Herald Pop (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 18, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
11. Choo, Young-joon (January 19, 2016). SM, 복합외식공간 'SMT 서울' 21일 오픈 [SM, To Open 'SMT Seoul', A Multi-Food Space, on the 21st]. Segye Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 18, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
12. Kwon, Soo-bin (January 19, 2021). SM, 복합외식공간 SMT SEOUL 21일 오픈 [SM, Multi-Food Space 'SMT Seoul' to Open on the 21st]. News1 (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 18, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
13. Lee, Da-hye (January 19, 2016). SM, 복합외식공간 'SMT SEOUL' 오픈 "차별화된 한류 외식 문화 공간" [SM, To Open 'SMT SEOUL' Open "Differentiated Hallyu Restaurant Culture Space"]. Asia Today (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 18, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
14. Moon, Wan-sik (January 19, 2021). SM엔터, 요식업 진출..'SMT SEOUL' 21일 오픈 [SM Entertainment, To Enter the Restaurant Business..'SMT SEOUL' Opens on 21st]. StarNews (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 18, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
15. Yeon, Seung (January 19, 2016). SM엔터테인먼트 복합외식공간 'SMT SEOUL' 오는 21일 오픈 [A Multi-Dining Space for SM Entertainment 'SMT SEOUL' will Open on the 21st]. The Seoul Economic Daily [ko] (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 18, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2021 – via Naver.
16. No, Ah-yoon (July 14, 2017). SMT 서울, '2017 와인 스펙테이터 레스토랑 와인 리스트 어워드' 수상 [SMT Seoul, Wins '2017 Wine Spectator Restaurant Wine List Award']. Hotel & Restaurant (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 19, 2021. Retrieved November 20, 2021.
17. Shanken, Marvin (ed.). "2018 Wine Spectator Award of Excellence – SMT Seoul". Wine Spectator. Archived from the original on November 3, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2021.

External links

• Official website