You learn something new every day. For instance, today I learned that in South Korea you can be arrested and potentially spend a year in jail for purposely serving ants to customers at your two-Michelin-starred restaurant, even if those customers know they’re about to eat ants. No one was deceived. It wasn’t a catastrophic kitchen cleanliness issue. It’s all because South Korea has some weirdly specific food laws around which bugs are allowed on the menu.
According to reporting from The Guardian, prosecutors are seeking a one-year prison sentence and a 20 million won fine against the owner of a Michelin-starred restaurant in Seoul after it served a sorbet dessert topped with ants, with the alleged crimes having started in 2021.
The ants weren’t just random bugs scooped off a park sidewalk by a world-renowned chef desperate for an avant-garde culinary hit. They were imported gourmet edible ants from the U.S. and Thailand, like this kind, cited by CNN, sold by specialty suppliers like Ento Cuisine, where a four-ounce jar costs about $64.55 US.
Diners Knew They Were Eating Ant Sorbet
The problem wasn’t that the diners were tricked. The ants were listed on the menu, and the restaurant says only about 60 percent of guests chose the ant topping. The problem is that South Korea’s Food Sanitation Act only approves 10 insect species for human consumption, including silkworm pupae, mealworms, and grasshoppers. Ants aren’t on the list. Restaurants can apply for special approval to serve unapproved insects, but this one apparently never did.
Prosecutors say roughly 49,000 ants were served across more than 12,000 desserts, generating about 120 million won in revenue. Government investigators also said some imported ants contained heavy metal levels exceeding limits allowed for approved edible insects.
The chef, who, along with his restaurant, were not explicitly named in reports issued by South Korean officials, reportedly used ants for their naturally acidic flavor while working in Europe and the United States and didn’t realize they were illegal to use as an ingredient in South Korea.
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