I’d like a recommendation for a Korean restaurant with free or minimal corkage between UCLA and K-Town. I’d be brining German Riesling and Champagne. 8 pm on a Wednesday.
Open to other cuisines if you’ve got a can’t miss rec. too.
I’ve yet to see a korean restaurant in ktown not allow corkage. Most won’t charge you anything, some might charge you something (at the nicer ones).
One of the original higher end KBBQ, still really good. No corkage last time.
This place specializes in intestines/offal, but their regular pork/beef selections are awesome too. Wait time is around 30-40 minutes typically. I haven’t brought wine here before. If you get sat at the small tables you might not have space for wine bottles/glasses anyways. But man it’s delicious.
This place specializes in pork, specifically pork belly. Very accommodating to you bringing wine. I think it’s $10 for corkage? I can’t remember specifically.
Not KBBQ but asian inspired twists on american seafood. Very receptive to corkage but I think it’s $15/btl? Their salt and pepper lobster is damn good.
Also not KBBQ but maybe my favorite place to drink some wine in ktown. Koreans love FRESH sashimi, like fish in tank, comes out and slice it up fresh. They specialize in local korean halibut. You eat it with shiso leaf / lettuce wraps and a bean paste. No corkage, TRUE hole in the wall. Order a medium combo (for four people) and it comes with a bunch of stuff on the side, ends with a spicy fish head stew. I usually get some spot prawns/live octopus on the side. Sometimes they have lobster as well. I <3 the place. They don’t speak english very well unless their kids are working, but pointing and saying small/medium/large combo is sufficient.
there are nicer looking versions of this type of restaurant in Ktown but I really like the owners of this place, they are super nice. The first time I went I apparently forgot my jacket. For months I had no clue where I left it. I came back here maybe 4-5 months later. The mom comes up to me making a symbol for a jacket. I was pretty confused. She runs to the back, comes back with a plastic bag with my jacket neatly folded in it.
Anyways, food is great, it’s not terribly pricey. The place is just small, so either call to make a res or just arrive early if you have a party larger than 4.
these are some great recs. The meat quality at Ahgassi is great; I believe it’s part of the same group that does Kang ho dong baekjung and Quarters, and they all have a similar vibe.
Some other interesting Korean options between Ktown and west LA:
Hanjip (more hipstery)
Baroo
I haven’t been to either and it doesn’t seem like either has much of a wine focus so I can’t vouch for their corkage policies, but they look pretty unique and would love to have your feedback if you get a chance to check them out.
In general, Korean seems like it’d be a tough fit for wine, esp Korean bbq, since it’s not built on subtle flavors, and they can clash with a lot of the elements in wine like tannins, etc. There’s a lot of garlic, ginger, sweet and spicy marinades/sauces, all of which to me cry out for an icy bottle of Soju, smooth Korean beer, or a sweet and simple Korean raspberry wine. However, I’d be interested to see what works, and the riesling/Champagne combo sounds interesting. Hope you enjoy the trip regardless!
Baroo is awesome, vegetarian if not mostly vegan. No wine/beer and they don’t allow byob (it’s illegal unless you have a license and they are abiding by the law).
I didn’t recommend Quarters/ KHD cause the lines are too long.
Hanjip allows corkage, $20/btl. Wait time can be long. It’s an americanized twist to kbbq, lots of traditional stuff but with a slightly more modern tinge to it. Like steamed egg with uni.