Korean American Bistro the Mulberry Lands in Sawtelle With Fried Chicken and Jjigae

The Mulberry, a new Korean American bistro from owners Jennifer Chon and David Lee, opened on November 12 in the former Plan Check Sawtelle Japantown space. With chef Curtis Park at the helm, the neighborhood restaurant serves updated takes on classic, homey Korean dishes paired with cocktails. The name is a nod to hanji, a durable Korean paper made from mulberry bark.

Chon and Lee recall an early 2025 meeting with their future chef, Curtis Park, at Sawtelle Japantown’s Hermanito, when the Mulberry was still a budding concept. At the restaurant, the group jotted notes down on a napkin, visualizing everything from a mood board to the location and the menu. “Curtis quickly caught on to what we were trying to do, and we worked together in our home,” says Chon.

The husband-and-wife team was first introduced to Park earlier in 2025 when they lost their home in the Palisades Fire and were forced to relocate; a friend recommended him, and the trio found themselves cooking together in the couple’s temporary home. “We thought the Mulberry would be the right time, place, and right reasons to open in Sawtelle Japantown, since it is central for those displaced from the fires,” Chon says.

Before opening Mulberry, Los Angeles-native Lee had long dreamed of introducing a fast-casual Korean restaurant, similar to Panda Express. As part of the team that took Shake Shack public in 2014, Lee found that his concept was more closely related to Din Tai Fung or Hillstone. “I’ve been thinking about and studying Korean food for over 30 years,” says Lee. “I asked myself what the Korean version of a Hillstone would look like? But the Mulberry has its own life. I’m excited about what we created.”

Bluefin tuna and trout roe over crisp vegetables and rice. Bonjwing Lee

Park — a veteran of restaurants including San Francisco’s Benu and Commis — centers the Mulberry’s menu around dishes he grew up eating, infused with California ingredients. A Korean aguachile nestles in cold kimchi broth, while soy-marinated blue prawn over barley rice gets topped with roe. Sticky, sweet, spicy wings are Park’s take on Korean fried chicken; raw oysters are served with mignonette and chojang, a vinegar-and-chile-based dipping sauce. Larger dishes include the soondubu jjigae-inspired silken tofu stew with wagyu, chilled acorn noodle soup with salted cucumber, steak tartare bedded on crispy rice with an egg yolk, spicy braised black cod in a stone bowl, and pork spare ribs cooked on a charcoal grill. Sides include egg soufflé and ssam with assorted lettuces, herbs, and ssamjang (Korean soybean paste). Desserts span mango shaved ice, cheesecake, and a caramelized cinnamon hotteok (Korean pancake) with vanilla ice cream, plus sunflower and pumpkin seeds.

RVR’s Zak Kellum developed an inventive cocktail menu that channels Korean flavors and ingredients. Diners can sip on the frozen Sikhye Slushy with pisco, rice tea, cinnamon, and ginger, or a Burdock Penicillin with a double oak bourbon, honey, burdock tea, ginger, lemon, and sherry. The Sujunggwa Manhattan combines Nor’easter Whisky with cinnamon, ginger, and Alambique Serrano’s three-year-old rum. Coffee sourced from Silver Lake’s Lamill is also available, alongside tea, and zero-proof sikhye.

Matt Winter, who also designed the newly opened Max & Helen’s and RVR’s interior, transformed the former Plan Check. Sleek, modern bistro vibes are balanced with warm tones, plus ruffled white curtains, low lighting emanating from hanging French lights, a private dining room tucked into the side, and candles.

The Mulberry opens at a time when modern Korean chefs and operators are expanding in Los Angeles. Fermentation restaurant Baroo reopened with a tasting menu format in 2024 to widespread acclaim, while Chef Ki Kim’s contemporary Korean tasting menu restaurant, Restaurant Ki, received a Michelin star in January and was recently named as one of Eater’s Best New Restaurants in America this week. For Chon and Lee, the Mulberry opening is personal.

“The Mulberry is an expression of what it feels like to be a Korean-American in modern times,” says Chon. “Korean Americans want fries and dirty martinis. I want the Mulberry to be a conversation starter and a melting pot of all these beautiful cultures.”

The Mulberry is open from 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, with plans to expand bar hours in the coming months at 1800 Sawtelle Boulevard, Sawtelle Japantown, CA, 90025.