Danji
Danji is Chef Hooni Kim’s first restaurant that opened 15 years ago. It earned a Michelin Star back in 2012 and closed in April 2023 due to a fire. We’ve been to the Chef’s other Michelin Star restaurant, Meju, which was phenomenal for what it was. We decided to check out this to see how it was, so I made a reservation pretty easily a week prior for 5:30 PM for a Friday.
Ambiance & Service
The interior is actually very tight, so they ask you to hang your jackets and coats on the wall. We were seated in the communal tables, where there were hooks below so you can hang your backpack or purses. Throughout the night, it was definitely very bustling, and there were a lot of people come and going.
The service was pretty fast once you order your food. Otherwise, I thought the pacing of the servers was a little weird. I did have to flag them down to order things, but maybe that was intentional.
Food
The Omija Oh My ($12 - left) came with cold-brewed omija (Korean five-flavor berry) tea. This was pretty good, albeit definitely on the sweeter side.
The Body & Seoul ($12 - right) came with fermented golden plum syrup, white verjus, and orange peel. This was also pretty good and less sweet than the drink above.
The Trio of Banchan ($13) came with:
- Napa Cabbage Kimchi (bottom)
- Marinated Fish Cake (top-left)
- Cucumber Kimchi (top-right)
These little banchans all tasted like what you’d get in Korean restaurants. They do taste very rustic, similar to what you’d get from any Korean store that sells banchan.
The Handmade Crispy Pork & Chive Dumplings ($15) came with 5 pieces along with a soy sesame dipping sauce. The dumplings were crispy with a lot of meat juice inside. The soy dipping sauce was definitely salty and not really needed since the meat was already seasoned. The dumplings overall tasted pretty good.
The Bossam Pork Belly ($32) came with Niman Ranch pork and pickled mu radish wrap. The pork was super tender and full of flavor, and the pickled radish wrap was an excellent vessel for this. There were a lot of scallion slices on the side that you can include with the wrap.
The Beef Short Rib “Galbi Jjim” with Rice ($46) came with DeBragga black angus beef and roasted root vegetables. I was surprised how this was served because they essentially gave you a huge block of short rib. The short rib was very fork-tender with a good mix of tendons, fat, and meat. The sauce reminded me a little of the Chinese Shanghai-style braised pork belly (hong shao rou). My partner felt the sauce was salty, but I think it was fine especially when complemented by the rice. This dish was very rustic and definitely brought me back to eating this at home.
Final Verdict
Danji was definitely a pretty good Korean restaurant with some nice, homey flavors. This restaurant could be a good place to checkout before a show or with a group of people so you can sample more things. Compared to other Koreatown restaurants, this may be slightly on the expensive side, but the food will be consistently good for the Theater District.
Yelp Jabs
The food here was awful… The worst banchan trio. :( We couldn’t even finish these. Most dishes have too much sugar.
The food here definitely had sugar, but I wouldn’t say it’s super sweet. Either this Yelper from North Carolina has an insane sweet sensitivity or is just trolling.
The food was fairly tasty but overall felt everything very overpriced for what it was. Can get better korean food in ktown for a fraction of the price.
You are around the outer edges of the Theater District, so expect some foods to be slightly pricier than their local neighborhoods. The same could be said that you get cheaper, comparable Chinese food in Chinatown.
Revisions
- Feb 7, 2025 - Initial revision.