After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America, Kim, a native of South Korea, honed his culinary skills on the high seas by working on a cruise ship, where he absorbed diverse food cultures from dozens of countries worldwide. Returning to the US, he learned his fine-dining chops at renowned establishments like Bouley, Gordon Ramsay, Per Se, Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare, Zuma, and Morimoto, leading teams of up to 100 staff.
Having experienced larger, more operational restaurants, Kim decided to go solo and channel his creativity into a smaller venture where he could be more impactful. He opened his debut restaurant, Jeju Noodle Bar, in New York City in September 2017, with a novel idea: to explore a fresh version of Korean ramyun—something he’d never seen done in the US. The accolades soon followed.
Kim’s other passions include collecting watches, snapping shots with his Leica camera, and exploring his love of red burgundy.
Restaurant
Located in Manhattan’s West Village, Jeju Noodle Bar is a popular neighborhood destination known for its contemporary take on South Korean comfort food.
True to his rule-breaking nature, Jeju—’talent’ in Korean—reflects Kim’s vision of Korean food without conventional boundaries. The menu was built on his vision of serving the fresh Korean version of Japan’s ramen, ramyun, which hadn’t been done in NYC before. It was a bold move, given Kim had never worked in a ramen shop before opening his outpost. Initially, he relied upon his vast reserve of culinary skills to showcase his talent as he developed his signature style in preparing fresh noodle dishes.
Kim’s confidence, talent, and innovative approach, incorporating ingredients from unconventional sources, quickly gained him attention, as he reshaped a new version of Korean comfort food.
Jeju Noodle Bar obtained its first Michelin star in 2019. It remains the first and only noodle restaurant in the US to achieve and retain that honor. In 2024, the restaurant was ranked 16th in Pete Wells’ 100 Best Restaurants in New York City.
Recipes and dishes
The Korean take on Japan’s ramen, known as ramyun, forms the cornerstone of Kim’s menu. Guests can choose from various handmade noodles, all set in rich, bold broths, like the gochu ramyun with pork belly and white kimchi in a spicy pork broth, or miyuk featuring a vegetable broth with braised seaweed, confit mushrooms, and garlic plankton oil. Dishes may also feature high-end ingredients like wagyu or lobster and seasonal treats like heirloom tomatoes or white truffles.
Jeju Noodle Bar has also built its reputation on equally tempting non-noodle dishes, such as the irresistibly crispy fried chicken, the ragù-like chopped-beef gochujang bokum, the elegant, multilayered toro ssam bap, with scrambled eggs, tobiko (flying-fish roe), and luxurious, fatty tuna tartare.
Armed with creativity and talent, Kim’s exploration of authentic Korean dishes with his unique twist continues to evolve and attract a dedicated following.
