A Window Into the Pleasures of Korean Food Today

Cuisines of the moment come and go, but it’s now clear that Korean food has become canon in America. Why is that so?  Perhaps because, like beloved cuisines before it (see: Italian, Japanese) it has diversified and expanded, and can now be found at every tier of dining, from fast food to exquisite tasting menu. That versatility is, we think, the defining trait behind cuisines that capture our imagination. Which is to say, you can enjoy a bowl of budae jjigae and soju, or Osetra-topped kim with grower Champagne, and in each case it is an exquisite snapshot of how Korean culture and flavor has become part of our lives.

To capture this remarkable range of pleasure and experiences, we asked photographer Jutharat “Poupay” Pinyodoonyachet, who captures many scenes of New York City nightlife, to spend time in four restaurants that embody the diversity of Korean food today: Joo Ok, the locavore tasting-menu restaurant that Michelin-starred chef Shin Chang-ho transported from Seoul to Midtown; Yoon Haeundae Galbi, from one of the pioneering families in Korean barbecue (namely in Busan, in 1964) whose Koreatown outpost is a benchmark for KBBQ; the much lauded Atoboy from Junghyun and Ellia Park, one of the catalysts for New York’s remarkable Korean restaurant boom; and Pocha 32, a simulacrum of the beloved drinking haunts of Seoul, which has become one of the most buzzy places to drink in K-Town.

Together they represent the scope of why Korean food resonates today in America, and why we can’t get enough.

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