Burger King opens world's first flagship store in Seoul's Seongsu-dong

"We expect Burger King to comfortably enter the 1 trillion won club this year. Our targets are 1.1 trillion won ($795 million) in sales and 600 stores."

Lee Dong-hyung, chief executive of BKR, made the remarks Wednesday at the opening press conference for Flameground by Burger King, the chain's new flagship store in Seongdong-gu, Seoul.

Flameground is set to open to the public on Sept. 10. Billed as the world's first Burger King flagship store, it is designed to go beyond selling burgers and expand the way customers experience them.

The concept translates Burger King's core asset — flame grilling — into space, art and gastronomy. Throughout the store, visitors can take in the brand's signature "flame flavor" as a visual experience.

The entrance sets the tone immediately. The corridor leading into the store is designed around the "broiler," the flame-grilling equipment central to Burger King's cooking method. Sinuous red lighting and artificial smoke fill the passage, evoking the sensation of being inside a broiler. The exterior uses red brick to conjure the image of spreading flames.

Artworks interpreting flame grilling also draw the eye. Burger King collaborated with five emerging artists to render the broiler and direct-fire cooking as visual pieces. Kinetic installations using broiler rails move along the ceiling and through the center of the store.

The menu, too, reflects the flagship's point of difference. Three signature burgers — the K-Cube Galbi, the Memphis BBQ Burger and the Philly Cheesesteak — are available exclusively at Flameground, featuring cooking techniques and ingredients not found at regular locations.

The K-Cube Galbi Burger combines Burger King's signature flame flavor with the taste of Korean-style galbi. It is built around a double-protein structure — a flame-grilled Whopper patty paired with cube-cut galbi — with whole garlic added to complement the patty.

Deeper inside the store sits The Gastro-Flameground, a 10-seat dining space offering a reservation-only course meal that deconstructs the Whopper ingredient by ingredient — bun, vegetables, sauce and more. Burger King brought in five chefs to run the program. At 89,000 won per person, it is not cheap, but reservations for next month are already fully booked.

"We built the course around each individual ingredient that goes into the Whopper," said Lee Seung-min, chef at The Gastro-Flameground. "It is a service that expands the brand's identity."

One corner of the store is devoted to Flameground-exclusive merchandise. On display are a pouch shaped like a burger patty and a flame-character keyring, alongside a coaster set assembled layer by layer like Whopper toppings, stickers and cold cups.

"Flameground is the space that most intensively captures our passion for burgers and the essence of flame flavor," CEO Lee said. "We designed it to extend that flame flavor beyond the menu — into the space itself and the dining experience — so customers can engage with the brand in an entirely new way." He added that Flameground "will serve as an important milestone showing the direction of the brand experiences Burger King will offer going forward."