jua, new york city.
in addition to double chicken please, i really wanted to try a new-to-me michelin restaurant during our last trip to nyc. something that landed in the intersection of this place is doing something unique/interesting that i want to try and i can still get a reservation a couple weeks out.
despite living in LA with easy access to koreatown, we really don’t have too much experience with korean food outside of the occasional korean bbq or soondubu jjigae, maybe a seolleongtang. we’d certainly never had a korean fine dining experience and were looking to change that with a reservation at jua. we were already planning a trip to korea at this point, so it was also top-of-mind.
jua old fashioned: rye, spiced demerara, bitter; nok su kow: gochogaru infused rum, plum, lime.
we started with some delicious cocktails and then meandered through a seafood-centric tasting meal that was both new and unique for me, but also strangely nostalgic.
caviar kim.
uni kim.
striped jack.
jook.
everything was super fresh, super delicious and beautifully presented. i found the jook particularly comforting and nostalgic. i could have had many, many bowls of it. the little banchan bites presented with the duck course were also such bursts of wonderfully funky, bright flavors and textures.
smoked mackerel.
duck & chan: dry aged duck, assorted banchan.
sujeonggwa: pear sorbet, cinnamon punch, asian pear, cinnamon tuile.
goguma juak: korean sweet potato donut, brown butter ice cream, almond cookie crumble.
definitely a meal to remember, and one that got us very excited to go to south korea (though that’s a post for a later time..)!
36 E 22nd St, New York, NY 10010
