by JENN TANAKA
Seoul’s dining scene has evolved this past decade. South Korean chefs, inspired by molecular gastronomy’s transformation of Catalan cuisine, have pushed the boundaries of modern Korean cuisine, unbound by region, technique, and ingredients or, like K-pop, by genre.
Chef Ki Kim’s Culinary Journey
Chef Ki Kim cooked in those modern Korean kitchens. He draws on those experiences and others at his Restaurant Ki in Little Tokyo, a very high-end, one-seating-per-night tasting menu served in an unassuming office building.
Open less than a year, Restaurant Ki has already earned a coveted Michelin star and Kim the organization’s 2025 Young Chef Award.
At Ki, Kim explores his culinary life’s journey, which includes working at chef’s tables at Blanca in New York and Hayato in downtown Los Angeles. Also on his local résumé: chef de cuisine at Jordan Khan’s Meteora and his own critically lauded, now-shuttered Kinn in Koreatown.
Kim’s more tangential life experiences include his childhood in Korea; his adolescence in Aurora, Colorado, known for its diverse community and cultures; and his time spent in other New York fine-dining kitchens.
Signature Dishes
Though its 12-course Korean American menu changes often, Ki is best known for Kim’s octopus.
It’s simultaneously tender and delicately crisp. Plated with an umami-rich, orange-hued sauce derived from octopus heads, it’s an homage to Kim’s time at Jungsik, a three-Michelin-starred New Korean restaurant with locations in New York and Seoul.
A ramen course is likewise extraordinary. Lumps of crab meat are interspersed in the noodles and nestled in a creamy yet translucent sauce. Kim uses small-batch noodles by Keizo Shimamoto, once upon a time the creator of the viral ramen burger.
Maine lobster served with morels and farmers market carrots evokes white-tablecloth French fine dining.
A quenelle of verdant perilla sorbet invigorates a dish presented in an oversized-leaf bowl with summery cherry tomatoes; it suggests Cal-Korean.
The chef presents a platter of barbecue roasted squabs before he slices and plates the birds; it recalls scenes both of roasted poultry hanging in Chinatown windows and of the ceremonial presentation of a Thanksgiving turkey.
Each plate is then adorned with three tender slices of breast meat and a single leg, the talon still connected; it’s a touch of whimsy and cleverly reminds diners where their food came from.
A wafer-thin, mushroom-shaped ice cream sandwich is also a showstopper. A layer of hazelnut chocolate adds another playful dimension to the dessert.
The dish combines the nostalgia of childhood—you have to eat it with your fingers—with the refined technique of a seasoned chef. The paper-thin wafer reminds you that life is delicate and, as the ice cream softens, you can’t help but feel that time is fleeting. So enjoy, before it’s gone.
The Experience
The Restaurant Ki experience runs several hundred dollars per person, with wine- and Korean-spirits pairings additional. It begins at 6:30 p.m. and is limited to ten diners per night.
Need-to-Know: Restaurant of Ki
Restaurant Ki, 111 S. San Pedro Street, Los Angeles, restaurantki.com
Photo credits: Photos courtesy of ARRIVED LA
