Meju is now taking reservations for its limited seatings. Located in the back of the Little Banchan Shop on 49th Avenue, the restaurant specializes in Korean fermentation and is helmed by Michelin-starred chef Hooni Kim.
The limited seatings currently take place 3-4 nights a week with one seating at 6:45pm for a total of eight patrons. The 7-course menu is priced at $185 per person.
Meju is an upscale extension of the cooking and thesis behind Little Banchan Shop. Namely, the intensity of flavor and the health benefits derived from natural fermentation versus industrial fermentation.
In discussing the restaurant with Hooni this week, I envision that a meal at Meju incorporates a lot of the knowledge he shared with me regarding the healthy attributes of natural fermentation and natural foods, versus their commercial counterparts. That knowledge was garnered by the many years Hooni spent learning about natural fermentation from his mentor back in Korea, and is the underpinning behind his strong belief in clean eating every day – the impetus behind Little Banchan.
Nevertheless for those who want to splurge and taste the intense flavors produced by a master, the experience includes exiting the store through a hidden backdoor, going through a long slim entryway with a beautiful hand-painted sky mural, and entering a serene high-ceilinged dining room where patrons are seated around a bar overlooking the restaurant’s kitchen. What happens after that you will have to discover for yourself.
Meju Instagram – see the pics behind the food, +reservation portal
A Korean Utopia To Go, At Little Banchan Shop – ode from The New Yorker
[…] serve? Ahh, a one-word but not so simple answer: fermentation. But if you want all the details, we wrote the restaurant up when it first opened. Also, you’ll discover that this is not the first Michelin go-round for the owner, Chef Hooni […]