Jae Bang

Executive Chef Jae Bang brings his Michelin Star pedigree and more than sixteen years experience of global haute cuisine to Melbourne’s new Nordic-inspired restaurant, Freyja.

With a taste for mastering haute cuisine, Jae rose up the ranks in award-winning restaurants with Michelin star credentials, including Arzak in San Sebastian (3 Michelin Stars) as a Chef de partie, New York’s Daniel (2 Michelin Stars) as Sous Chef and prestigious Waldorf Astoria as Chef de Cuisine (New York, NY) and Executive Chef (La Quinta, CA).

Born and raised in Seoul, South Korea, Jae studied at New York’s Culinary Institute of America, graduating with an Associate Degree in Culinary Arts before beginning his global culinary career. His first foray in a professional kitchen began as a stagier at El Bulli Spain, a world-renowned three Michelin star restaurant and five-time World’s Best Restaurant winner.

In 2018, Jae set his sights on Northern Europe to take the helm of Norway’s Re-naa Restaurant Group with a focus on New Nordic Cuisine, merging ancient Scandinavian methods with modern cooking philosophies. ​ With a Michelin Star rating and reputation to uphold, Jae took charge of the group’s operations across concept direction, menu planning and development for Bistro, Konditori and Private Dining, as well as playing a leading role in the group’s opening of multi-venue hospitality development, Konditori.

Under Jae’s creative culinary direction over the last four years, Re-naa received its second Michelin Star in 2020, maintaining it in 2021, and is the only restaurant in Norway with two stars in the Scandinavian Michelin Guide. Simultaneously, the group also received the ‘Top 10 restaurants in Northern Europe’ (360 Guide and White Guide, Norway), and Nordic Guide’s ‘Best Restaurant’ in 2020.