Asia's 50 Best Restaurants to be held in Hong Kong

Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants will be unveiled in Hong Kong in March, marking the first time the prestigious culinary awards are hosted in the city. The 2026 ceremony, scheduled for March 25, will bring together leading chefs, restaurateurs and food media from across the region for a week of events culminating in the announcement of the new No. 1 restaurant in Asia. Last year’s top honor went to Gaggan in Bangkok. The ranking is determined by a voting academy of more than 350 food writers, chefs an

Jan. 12, 2026

Year of Red Horse gallops into fashion with playful charms, limited-edition style

As the Year of the Red Horse begins, fashion houses are once again turning to the Chinese zodiac for inspiration, releasing playful and symbolic items that celebrate fresh starts and good fortune. From luxury bag charms to limited-edition watches and graphic streetwear, the horse motif has emerged across categories this season, offering collectors and trend followers a whimsical way to mark the Lunar New Year. Leading the lineup is Loewe’s Horse Padlock Charm, part of its New Year capsule. Craft

Jan. 12, 2026

Korea to invest billions to nurture AI professionals

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced Monday it will invest 43 billion won ($29.4 million) this year for training programs on artificial intelligence in response to the rapidly changing global content industry. The ministry will cooperate with the Korea Creative Content Agency to foster talent with expertise in AI-powered production and strengthen Korean content, which encompasses diverse cultural media production ranging from music, television dramas, films and animation to webt

Jan. 12, 2026

Lee Aram wins 25th SongEun Art Award with narratives of former Yongsan military base

Korean artist Lee Aram, 33, has won the 25th SongEun Art Award for the media artwork “Every Worm Trampled is a Star” that explores the narratives surrounding the former Yongsan military base -- a site used by Japanese and US forces and largely cut off from its surrounding communities for almost 140 years. Lee, based in Amsterdam, was among 20 finalists for the annual SongEun Art Award, which saw a total of 556 applicants this year, according to the SongEun Art and Cultural Foundation on Friday.

Jan. 11, 2026

Disney finalizes tie-up with Webtoon Entertainment, takes 2% stake

The Walt Disney Company has finalized its strategic partnership with Webtoon Entertainment in a deal expected to accelerate the global expansion of Korean webtoons while supporting Disney’s broader push to further monetize its content library. Disney acquired a roughly 2 percent equity stake in Webtoon Entertainment on Thursday, according to filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Webtoon Entertainment, which debuted on the Nasdaq in June 2024, is the parent company of

Jan. 11, 2026

Season 2 'Culinary Class Wars' chefs ride popularity wave, led by Son Jong-won

Netflix’s mega-hit “Culinary Class Wars” is once again catapulting its chef contestants into stardom. Leading the Season 2 pack is Son Jong-won, a member of the white spoon team comprising established chefs. Soft-spoken yet confident, the chef behind Seoul’s two one-Michelin-starred restaurants, Eatanic Garden and L’Amant Secret, has captivated viewers. Son’s Instagram following has jumped by more than 300,000 since the show’s release, reaching 475,000 as of Friday; reservations at his restauran

Jan. 10, 2026

[Contribution] 'Kpop Demon Hunters' and the rise of Koreanism

By Sung Soo Eric Kim During the 2026 New Year's Eve countdown in Dallas, two K-pop songs were played: "APT." by Rose and Bruno Mars, and "Golden" from "KPop Demon Hunters." This past Halloween, a curious scene unfolded in American neighborhoods. Among children dressed as superheroes or cartoon characters, some were dressed as figures from "KPop Demon Hunters," singing their songs as they went door-to-door. What stood out was not the children. It was that parents and neighbors knew the songs as w

Jan. 10, 2026

Designer Haley Oh earns international recognition through multiple global design awards

Graphic designer Haley Oh is gaining international recognition through consecutive wins at major global design awards, strengthening her profile on the global design stage. Based in Seattle, Washington, Oh works as a user experience (UX) designer at Microsoft, contributing to digital experience design and UX prototyping. Oh holds an MFA in graphic design from ArtCenter College of Design, where her academic research focused on typography and visual systems. That research later evolved into award-

Jan. 9, 2026

Olive Young to sell mobile gift coupons in Vietnam, eyes Japan, Southeast Asia

South Korea’s leading health and beauty retailer has begun selling mobile gift coupons in Vietnam, marking its first overseas expansion of the digital gifting business. CJ Olive Young also plans to sell gift coupons online in Japan and other Southeast Asian markets, insiders told The Korea Herald on Friday. The company has launched sales through a partnership with M12PLUS, a Vietnamese company specializing in mobile coupon distribution. Olive Young’s coupons launched Friday on M12PLUS’ platform,

Jan. 9, 2026

How far has K-beauty tech come? Korean beauty brands turn heads at CES

Korean beauty brands asserted their growing influence at CES 2026, held Tuesday to Friday in Las Vegas, where beauty tech emerged as a serious frontier for artificial intelligence, digital health and data-driven personalization. The strongest signal came from Kolmar Korea, which received the best of innovation award in the beauty tech category with its AI-based Scar Beauty Device. The company was also selected as an innovation award honoree in the digital health category. The beauty tech categor

Jan. 9, 2026

Visitors flock to Ulsan Petroglyph Museum after UNESCO listing

The Ulsan Petroglyph Museum is seeing a sharp rise in visitors following the UNESCO World Heritage inscription of the petroglyphs along Bangucheon, a major archaeological site in Ulsan. Ulsan Metropolitan City said Friday that since the site was added to UNESCO’s World Heritage list in July last year, monthly visitor numbers at the museum have increased by an average of 75 percent compared to the same period last year. The museum has recorded steady growth, with monthly visitors surpassing 10,00

Jan. 9, 2026

Dining with 'Culinary Class Wars' chef, Daehangno’s winter lineup

As we put the holiday spirit behind us and winter settles in, another weekend approaches. Streaming shows at home and ordering in are comfortable defaults, but for those brave enough to leave the house and head out into the cold in search of a meal or entertainment, two options stand out. You might assume that restaurants run by chefs featured on "Culinary Class Wars" are expensive and almost impossible to book amid the show’s runaway popularity. But an exception lies in the center of Seoul: a r

Jan. 9, 2026

After historic 2025, LCK sets stage for 'quantum leap'

The LCK — South Korea’s professional League of Legends esports league and one of the industry’s gold standards — is gearing up for what its leadership calls a "quantum leap" in 2026, building on what it has labeled its most successful year yet. "The LCK had its best year ever in 2025," said LCK Secretary-General Lee Jung-hoon at a press event Wednesday at the LCK Arena inside LoL Park in Jongno-gu, Seoul. "From Hanwha Life Esports’ victory at the LCK Cup, to Gen.G’s second consecutive MSI title

Jan. 7, 2026

Kimpro becomes world's most-watched YouTube Channel

Korean YouTube channel "Kimpro" has topped the global rankings for annual views, with 77.53 billion streams in 2025, according to YouTube analytics site Playboard. The figure more than doubled the roughly 38.1 billion annual views of MrBeast, the world’s most-subscribed YouTuber with about 460 million subscribers. Kimpro was launched in August 2022 by Kim Dong-jun, a former performance planner. He worked with influencer Yoo Baek-hap to grow the channel rapidly, drawing attention for its fast-pac

Jan. 7, 2026

The thousand faces of Lee Su-ji, Korea's sharpest comedy chameleon

Pull up "Hot Issue Ji," comedian Lee Su-ji's million-subscriber YouTube channel, and you might assume you've stumbled onto a collective run by an entire comedy troupe. Scroll through the last few months of uploads and the sheer variety is disorienting -- not just different characters, but entirely different visual universes, down to the fonts and emoji choices in thumbnails. One video features "Estrogen Girl Sooji," bathed in pastel pink, delivering a meticulously curated daily vlog so polished

Jan. 7, 2026