As Max Hong tells the story, he was at home one evening with his wife after a long day tending to their Japanese restaurants when a switch flipped.
“Everyone knows Japanese food,” he recalls thinking. “I want to serve Korean food.”
It took a few weeks, but Hong transformed his Seaside ramen spot, Kokoro Bowls & Rolls, into Bada Korean Kitchen. The couple began testing menu items during a soft reopening and plans to have a final list ready by the end of June.
Called in to help a struggling Carmel Burger Bar, Ashley Wolff hit upon the same idea – although the transition to Jeju Kitchen has been more measured and the response to a lineup where a cheeseburger sits alongside kimchi-spiked pork belly soup momentarily baffling.
“People look at the menu and are confused, until they see a Korean at the door,” she explains.
Normally, the addition of two restaurants would not signal a tremor in the culinary landscape. It brings the number of places in Monterey County with a dedicated Korean menu to six – seven if you count Ttobongee Chicken.
Yet there is a K-trend taking shape. Bulgogi House opened in downtown Monterey in 2023, replacing a sushi counter. Also in 2023, stars of a Korean reality television show descended upon Marina, where they installed a pop-up restaurant. According to the Food Institute, demand for bibimbap, galbi and other traditions jumped 90 percent in 2021 alone. Even tried and true chains like KFC have added Korean flavors.
“I think it’s perfect timing,” Hong observes.
Hong and his wife Sumin teased guests during their soft reopening with dishes like dduk bok gi (also spelled tteokbokki; there’s a degree of difficulty in the translation), a plate of rice and fish cakes that rapidly engages all the senses and leaves a flickering heat on the palate. Doenjang jjigae was another offering, a stew that pits bright, fresh flavors against the pungent richness of fermented soybean paste.
“My wife has so many ideas, but she’s not sure everyone will like her recipes,” Hong says. “Traditional Korean has strong, strong flavor.”
Some culinary historians have suggested that the intensity of Korean dishes is one reason the regional style has been slow to catch on in the U.S. A study prepared by historian Kyou-Jin Lee and published in the Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture estimated that just four Korean restaurants existed in Manhattan in the early 1960s, growing to just 18 by the ’70s Writing in the New York Times in 1999, Florence Fabricant still found the cuisine a bit mysterious, noting it was out there “just waiting to be discovered.”
The South Korean government noticed, too. In 2009, at a time when there were less than 10,000 Korean restaurants outside of the South’s borders, they began promoting the country’s food and culture in a global campaign. Now Statista estimates 40,000 are in operation around the world, with 5,200 in the U.S.
The timing was indeed right. Since the early 1990s, the American palate has become much more adventurous. Wolff points out that one of the favorite dishes at Jeju Kitchen is jajangmyeon, a noodle bowl draped in a swarthy black bean sauce that ripples with earthiness yet has a sweet and calming side. It’s Korean comfort fare.
Not all dishes are so exotic. KFC – in this case an acronym for Korean fried chicken – is served by many Asian fusion kitchens. For Hong, it’s a way for people to ease into familiarity with the flavor profile.
“If you’re scared to try Korean food, try deep fried chicken first,” he insists.
Kalbi – also styled as galbi – is already popular in the U.S., introduced as Korean-style short ribs.
“We’re going to do bone-in,” Wolff notes. “It’s more traditional.”
Wolff was born in Seoul. Her mother owned restaurants in Carmel, including Pangaea Grill, a pan-Asian fusion destination where just a few items – kalbi, japchae, kimchi jjigae – on an extensive menu was enough for Weekly readers to name it Best Korean.
The Hongs are Korean as well. Both of their parents own dining establishments in the home country.
“They will be OK, we will be OK,” Hong says. “People will open more Korean restaurants. It’s time for Korean food.”