Born and raised in Seoul, South Korea, Park graduated from the city's Kyung Hee University with a degree in Food Science. He then embarked on a voyage of culinary discovery that would take him to over 30 countries, including Finland and various European nations, Australia, the UK, and ultimately the US.
After working in top kitchens alongside celebrated chefs such as Andrew McConnell in Melbourne and Brett Graham in London, he returned to Seoul, where he absorbed the ideas of New Korean Cuisine through the mentorship of chef Jungsik Yim of Jungsik Dang. This led to a move to New York City to become Chef de Cuisine at Jungsik in Tribeca.
Chef Park and his wife Ellia came to New York with the goal of introducing the best of Korean culinary culture and hospitality to the US and beyond, a goal they’re achieving with the series of successful restaurants they have opened in the city.
Park's approach is to create delicious food based on balance: balance in terms of flavor, texture, and color, but also in terms of combining local seasonal ingredients with the dried, fermented, and preserved ingredients of Korean tradition.
Restaurants
Executive Chef JP and manager Ellia run several New York City restaurants, each serving New Korean Cuisine in a unique style.
Building on the success of the first of these restaurants, Atoboy, they created the award-winning Atomix. Both names play on the prefix 'Ato', which stems from the ancient Korean word for 'gift', the couple's innovative cuisine and distinctive approach to hospitality being their gift to the world of fine dining.
Atomix showcases chef Park’s creative flare with a tasting menu, complemented by impeccable service and sublime wine pairings. Atomix boasts two Michelin stars and three stars from The New York Times. It also won the Art of Hospitality Award in the 2022 edition of The World's 50 Best Restaurants, building on that success the following year with the Highest Climber Award and earning sixth place in the prestigious global gastronomy ranking in 2024.
Atoboy and Atomix were followed by two more restaurants in New York City: Naro and Seoul Salon.
Considering their significant presence and success, this husband-and-wife team can be counted among the foremost ambassadors of Korean cuisine in NYC.
Recipes and dishes
Acclaimed dishes from chef Park include his take on that Korean favorite, sweet and spicy fried chicken. Crispy, crunchy, and sticky with strong umami and soy-rich flavors, the dish encapsulates all that is great about Korean food. His dried scallop and yellowtail represents another modern take on a Korean classic. In a constantly changing menu, the one constant is a 'bap' or rice dish, in endlessly different pairings, from cold namul [spinach] to savory guk [soup] and many more, each combination offering a unique temperature, texture, flavor, and aroma.
Besides creating a constant flow of wonderful dishes and running many different restaurants, chef Park somehow finds time to write. Working with Jungyoon Choi, a Korean culinary researcher, lecturer and writer, Park is co-author of The Korean Cookbook, published in October 2023 by Phaidon.
The book is a labor of love, the fruit of years of shared expertise and research into the culture, traditions and ingredients of Korean home cooking. The resulting collection of over 350 recipes is an elegant and comprehensive guide to Korean cuisine, a true celebration of the traditional regional dishes and everyday food cooked in homes nationwide.
