Why Korean Food Resonates With American Diners

A chat with two cookbook authors and a chef

Happy First Sunday of May! Happy Cinco de Mayo! Welcome to the CulinaryWoman Newsletter. A special greeting to new subscribers, and my appreciation to our returning readers. I’m especially grateful to paid subscribers, who keep CW in business, since we don’t accept ads or have sponsors.

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A Growing Appreciation For Korean Food

There are at least 5,200 restaurants in the United States that serve Korean food, out of 40,000 outside Korea, according to an estimate by Statista.

The figure has continued to grow despite the pandemic, taking off at a time when Korean culture — movies, music, fashion, beauty products — has swelled in popularity worldwide.

Many Americans in the late 1900s grew up knowing children from Korea who were adopted as part of a major exodus from 1953 onward. More than 200,000 children left Korea for the United States, Canada and Europe, and other families followed in the 1960s and beyond. (As a film fan, I recommend watching Return to Seoul, the 2022 movie that provides an adoptee’s perspective.)

Yet, Korean food was far less familiar in the U.S. than other Asian cuisines, such as Chinese, Japanese and Thai. Although there have been Koreatowns for decades in places like New York and Los Angeles, it has taken until the past 10 years or so for Korean flavors to become mainstream.

Now, any town of any size has a Korean restaurant, and supermarkets are stocking sauces, noodles and sweets from and inspired by Korea. Here in Ann Arbor, we have two dedicated Korean markets, and Korean ingredients can be found at our other Asian grocery stores and at multiple restaurants.

The most highly regarded of our Korean restaurants is Miss Kim, named for chef Ji-Hye Kim, above. She has been a James Beard Award semi-finalist for three years in the Best Chef - Great Lakes category. As some of you’ll know from my book, Miss Kim is part of the Zingerman’s Community of Businesses and I had a tiny role in helping Ji-Hye’s culinary career come to life, thanks to an article I wrote in the New York Times.

Last week, Ji-Hye hosted two authors whose books have won accolades for their clear instructions on cooking Korean food at home.

One was Matt Rodbard, the editor of Taste magazine and co-author of Koreaworld: A Cookbook, co-authored with Deuki Hong.

The other was Eric Kim, author of Korean-American: Food That Tastes Like Home, who has a big following for his appearances on NYT Cooking’s video channel.

The pair were so popular that Ji-Hye moderated a conversation at Literati Bookshop and put on two dinners at Miss Kim, one of which I attended.

Reasons for writing the books

Matt said his book gave him “the opportunity to really report on the biggest story in all of food, not just Korean or Asian food, which is the modern Korean restaurant scene in America.” His goal was to convince readers to be excited to shop in different places “or just to try things they don’t feel comfortable cooking.”

Eric, who was born in Atlanta, actually had an academic career before shifting to literature and media. “There are a few times in life when you feel, ‘I should do this,’” he said about his cookbook. Given his background and experience pursuing a doctorate in English, “I was in this specific position to be able to translate one culture to another.”

Ji-Hye said both books appealed to her because their anecdotes and stories were “very specific.” She wondered which audience had been the most enthusiastic about each project.

Matt noted that many people have a Korean friend, even if they are not Korean. (That is certainly true for me.) These people were already familiar with Korean culture, and wanted to learn more about it.

Eric said that while his audience has been diverse, his book had touched an emotional chord in the Korean men and women who were among his readers. “I know they have a really beautiful story, and I know why they are going to cry” telling it to him.

The direction of Korean food

Ji-Hye noted that when she opened her restaurant eight years ago, the lineups on Korean menus at area places were similar. Her goal was to try a different approach with Korean ingredients.

Her menu for the authors’ dinner reflected that. The first course was a smorgasbord (above) that included fried lotus root, smashed potatoes, one of her specialties, and vegetable crudites. They were accompanied by three sauces: ssamjang (spicy) mayo, yuja chojang (another spicy red sauce) and roasted seaweed and sour cream dip.

She served a pulled pork soup similar to a gamjatang stew, accompanied by pineapple and onion kimchi, as well as pesto made from perilla leaves, which are often used as wraps. The last course was tteokbokki — rice dumplings with a gochujang tomato sauce with soft eggs on top. (Miss Kim kindly created vegetarian versions for me, which I appreciated.)

Matt noted that Korean food was moving out of Koreatowns and onto conventional menus. “I think there will be a picture where people don’t say they’re going to a Korean restaurant, they’re going out to a restaurant, maybe their favorite restaurant, that serves all the Korean hits with maybe some modern twists,” he said.

In 20 years, Korean food will no longer be kimchi and barbecue. “We’re changing our demographics as Americans, and I really think it’s going to be Korean food in the forefront.”

Although Eric claimed he isn’t good at forecasting, he noted that he had seen Korean food grow more in popularity during the past four years than throughout his entire lifetime.

One reason could be that as Korean culture becomes more familiar overall, oppportunites are arising for consumers to experience it. “That’s why you see a lot of people coming up now, and becoming and creating those markets,” he said.

Be sure to follow these authors and Ji-Hye on Instagram and elsewhere to keep up on the bustling Korean food scene.

Starbucks And Other Big Chains Take A First-Quarter Hit

The first quarter of 2024 looks like one that many big restaurant chains would like to forget. Starbucks reported its first decline in revenue since 2020, and pulled back on its projections for the full year. Pizza Hut and KFC also reported declines in sales, and McDonald’s said that it was moving away from its strategy to stress higher priced items.

Industry analysts have been watching for consumers to pull back from restaurant dining, due to higher menu prices and the rising cost of gasoline.

While Starbucks officials blamed the weather, Starbucks is also dealing with the impact of higher prices that have pushed the average price of many drinks above $5. Some of us are also waiting for them to reach a deal with Starbucks Workers United before we spend money there again.

Said CNBC, “It looks like the competition for a smaller pool of customers has grown fiercer as the diners still looking to buy a burger or cold brew become pickier with their cash.”

Downtown Detroit Restaurants Boom During The NFL Draft

Last month, downtown Detroit was awash in a record number of attendees for the NFL’s annual draft. The city spent weeks spiffing itself up for the event, which drew more than 775,000 fans.

Many of them headed for two Detroit specialties. Lafayette Coney Island said it sold more than 10,000 chili-topped hot dogs during the three-day event, and countless more orders for loose hamburgers (which some people call scrambled hamburgers) and chili fries.

Meanwhile, Buddy’s Pizza said it sold 16,000 slices of Detroit-style pizza, the square kind with the sauce sitting on top. That’s more than double the number Buddy’s would sell at its downtown restaurant on a typical weekend.

The NFL draft weekend also offered opportunities for restaurants across the area to do collaborations and pop ups. My friends at Side Biscuit in Ann Arbor brought their famous wings downtown, setting up shop across from the Siren Hotel.

The weekend became a memorable party, and Detroit now has its sights set on winning back the Super Bowl, which was last held here in 2006.

Where Do Japanese Baseball Players Eat In Chicago?

This is the spring of star Japanese players in Major League Baseball, Teams like the Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs and Detroit Tigers are all basking in strong performances from pitchers and batters with Japanese roots.

Since food is so important to athletes, it’s logical to wonder where they eat. In Chicago, a low key restaurant on Lawrence Avenue in the Albany Park neighborhood has become a draw for the stars, according to Block Club Chicago.

Chicago Kalbi, whose name actually refers to Korean short ribs, has been around since 1990. It’s owned by two Japanese immigrants, chef Isao Tozuka and his wife Chiyo. They wanted to open downtown, but found the real estate too expensive, so they chose a location close to Interstate 94.

After 34 years in business, it has now become a haven for Japanese-born athletes, decorated with autographed Japanese baseballs, photographs, more autographs and bobbleheads brought in by customers. There are pictures of dozens of players with Isao and Chiyo.

Cubs rookie pitcher Shota Imanaga celebrated his April 1 opening day win there with teammate Seiya Suzuki. When the Los Angeles Dodgers came to town later that week, Shohei Ohtani showed up. and the place has hosted legendary player Ichiro Suzuki multiple times.

“Ichiro played for 19 years, and every year he ate here,” Isao told Block Club. “Crazy.“

As for the name, “Korean barbecue is very popular in Japan,” he said. “Here, I make a lighter flavor in a Japanese way. As a French chef, I can see good meat. Chicago has nice beef. That’s why we named it Chicago Kalbi.”

Keeping Up With CulinaryWoman

In recent times, diners have been aflame with anger over unexpected fees on restaurant checks. Now, California is moving to ban them, as I wrote for Food & Wine. On July 1, restaurants will be required to disclose any surcharges up front and to indicate whether they are refundable.

It’s the second big restaurant move by California in the past few weeks. On April 1, California imposed a $20 an hour mininum wage on fast food restaurants.

I hope you’re listening to my friend Michele Norris’ wonderful podcast, Your Mama’s Kitchen. This week, her guests is none other than

Dorie Greenspan

and the episode is as delightful as anything can be. (Note: if you listen on Apple Music, there is a delay in posting the latest episode, so check back if you don’t see it immediately.)

A reminder that I’m speaking this Saturday at the public library in Fraser, Mich., about Satisfaction Guaranteed. The event is free and will start at 2 p.m. More information and directions are here. Leave extra time to get there due to construction.

Please feel free to follow and contact me.

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I’ll be back tomorrow with Red Beans & Advice for our paid subscribers, looking at a very interesting topic: how did owners fund their restaurants?

Have a great Sunday.

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