Today we’d like to introduce you to Katianna Hong. They and their team shared their story with us below:
Katianna & John Hong’s Yangban is a Korean-American Restaurant in the heart of Downtown L.A.’s Arts District. With Yangban, Katianna & John showcase an autobiographical experience that celebrates the varied dimensions of their respective backgrounds while providing a dynamic space for locals to gather.
The Yangban menu draws inspiration from Korean flavors and influences, regional California ingredients, as well as aspects of deli culture informed by Katianna’s childhood memories of frequenting New York delis. Together, Katianna & John craft dishes that reveal their distinct perspectives and upbringings as Korean Americans, as well as their nuanced culinary approach, refined from their shared time at The Restaurant at Meadowood, The Charter Oak and Mélisse.
While celebrated within the fine dining space, at Yangban, Katianna & John offer an experience intended for the everyday. Serving dinner each evening, the restaurant recalls a Night Market with a curated playlist rotating through early-aughts hip-hip and the option to order a la carte or participate in a Yangban-style prix fixe menu. Cold apps such as chilled acorn noodles and avocado & shinko pear salad have become essentials to start a meal at Yangban, while comforting dishes such as congee pot pie, double-fried chicken wings, biscuits & kare gravy, and black bean jajang bolo rice invite guests to linger. Desserts include whipped cheesecake, seasonal fruit crisps, and Buffalo milk soft-serve from Double 8 Dairy in Petaluma with housemade doenjang caramel and nurungji puffed rice.
The restaurant’s curated beverage offerings include canned and bottled housemade cocktails, wine, and beer, also available for takeaway. Additionally, guests can also find housemade pantry staples, snacks, face masks, and incense in the restaurant’s Super. The Super frequently spotlights offerings from L.A.- based and Asian American-owned businesses, including ANGMA, Et Toi Soap and Baisun Candle Company. This area of the space gives voice to Katianna & John’s passion for hip hop, fashion and streetwear culture, a reflection of their intention for Yangban to speak to their identities outside the kitchen.
Katianna & John worked closely with local branding firm Folklor to bring this shared vision for Yangban to life. Together, they’ve transformed the linear space off South Santa Fe Avenue to be a hub within the Arts District for casual dinners, late nights and quick stops for eclectic provisions. Milk crates line the alley in front of the restaurant, while indoor seating creates a welcoming setting for easy dinners. While named for the aristocratic ruling class in Korea who elevated the morality of society during the Joseon Dynasty, Katianna & John playfully reinterpret the meaning of the term “yangban” with Yangban’s approachability for a broad spectrum of experiences.
Since opening, Yangban has been recognized as a James Beard Best New Restaurant semifinalist, one of Bon Appetit’s Top 10 Best New Restaurants in America, Condé Nast Traveler’s Best New Restaurants in the World, and Esquire’s Best New Restaurants in America with Katianna & John honored as “Chefs of the Year.”
Katianna Hong, Chef/Partner, Yangban | Los Angeles, CA
Katianna Hong is the chef and partner of Yangban, a Korean-American Restaurant in Los Angeles’ Arts District.
Born in Korea and raised in upstate New York, Katianna spent much of her childhood training in competitive gymnastics, developing a profound sense of drive and discipline at an early age. After high school, Katianna uncovered her passion for the culinary arts and went on to study at the Culinary Institute of America Hyde Park and the UNLV School of Hospitality. Following graduation, Katianna furthered her education under the acclaimed chef Josiah Citrin at the Michelin two-starred Melisse in Santa Monica, California. Amid long kitchen shifts at Melisse, Katianna met her culinary collaborator and future husband, John. The two relocated to Napa Valley in 2011, where Katianna began working as a line cook at chef Christopher Kostow’s lauded The Restaurant at Meadowood. In 2014, she was named the restaurant’s first-ever chef de cuisine, simultaneously becoming the only female chef de cuisine at a Michelin three-star restaurant in the United States.
While working alongside Kostow at Meadowood, San Francisco Magazine named her Rising Star Chef for pushing the boundaries of fine dining with her creativity and nuanced approach. Katianna went on to open Kostow’s second restaurant in the heart of Napa, The Charter Oak. At Charter Oak, Katianna and team earned a nomination for the James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant, as well as a spot on Bon Appétit’s Top 50 Best New Restaurants List for the celebratory, family-style dining experience featuring seasonal and inventive California fare. In 2018, Katianna was honored as one of Food & Wine’s Best New Chefs.
Following the birth of their daughter, Alessia, Katianna and John relocated to Southern California in 2019 to pursue their dream of opening their first solo restaurant project together. At Yangban, Katianna & John offer a multi-dimensional, autobiographical experience that showcases their respective backgrounds and upbringings while providing a dynamic neighborhood space for locals to gather.
John Hong, Chef/Partner, Yangban | Los Angeles, CA
John Hong is the chef and partner of Yangban, a Korean-American Restaurant in Los Angeles’ Arts District.
Growing up in Highland Park, Illinois as a first-generation Korean-American, John’s childhood and family life centered around a deep love of food and celebration. This early respect for the art of hospitality, as well as his love of cooking subsequently inspired his culinary path. While attending The Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago, John worked as an extern for chef Grant Achatz at the world-renowned, three Michelin-starred Alinea. Upon graduation, John joined the team as a Chef de Partie, an experience that continued to inform his early career in fine dining. Several years later, John headed west to join Josiah Citrin’s Michelin-starred Melisse in Santa Monica, California. While there, John met his culinary collaborator and future wife, Katianna. The pair moved north to join the team at chef Christopher Kostow’s acclaimed The Restaurant at Meadowood in Napa Valley. Over nine years at Meadowood, John spent time on every station in the kitchen, eventually becoming chef de cuisine, where he maintained the restaurant’s three Michelin stars for three years. In 2015, John was named a Maker of the Napa Valley by AFAR and in 2016, he was named Asian Business Association’s “Chef of the Year,” a reflection of his passion for authentically modernizing the food of his childhood.
Following the birth of their daughter, Alessia, John & Katianna relocated to Southern California in 2019 to pursue their dream of opening their first solo restaurant project together. At Yangban, Katianna & John offer a multi-dimensional, autobiographical experience that showcases their respective backgrounds and upbringings while providing a dynamic neighborhood space for locals to gather.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I don’t ever think it’s a smooth road. We initially were under construction during the beginning of the pandemic when restaurants were takeout only and dine-in was shut down. It was challenging to remain creative while still making most of our business decisions based on the ever-changing times and the safety of our guests and staff. For example, we opened with QR code ordering and a deli and have since had to transition into a full-service dinner restaurant.
We have also made it a point to challenge the traditional restaurant model in terms of staffing, etc. We are trying to make it a more equitable program for all team members and not just specific roles.
In terms of our vision, food, etc. I think anytime that you approach something differently, there is always pushback.
When people are unsure what specific box our concept and our food belong to, they get confused and sometimes very critical. John and I truly approach YANGBAN as a conversation starter. We hoped to not only question but also learn about identify, culture, tradition, the juxtaposition of modern and old world.
We don’t have anything as a reference for what we are doing besides our own experiences. We wanted to cook from an authentic place…it just so happens that our authentic selves and the style in which we cook incorporates Korean influences, Jewish influences, California influences, etc. You can call it fusion for lack of a better term but this is not fusion to us; it’s our authentic cuisine. It takes time to create something unique. We have been only working on our authentic cuisine for about two years or so….deep diving into our identities as Asian Americans and how different that is for both of us.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
We are proud to be speaking our truth and doing some self-discovery along the way. My husband is the child of Korean immigrants and the first American born of his family. I was adopted to a Jewish father and Irish catholic mother in upstate NY at a very young age. While we both can say that we are “Korean American”, our experiences and how we relate and identify to our culture are vastly different.
We wanted to not only explore these differences but also to create a place where the newer generation of Asian Americans could relate and call their own.
We tend to approach everything we do a bit differently. We truly believe that it’s so important to keep moving forward and evolving. We have no desire to replicate what has ever done before. We want to create something unique that only we could have in this place and this time.
We don’t have a desire to fit in or follow the norm; we are seeking to provide a different experience both in the service and the cuisine. We hope that guests try something new that is foreign to them but in the same moment are able to find an element that they can identify with.
We feel like questioning traditions and constantly evolving is a responsibility to our community the closest term that we have used to explain is “Korean Americana”.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
We listen to a lot of Dave Chang. He was very forward-thinking in his time as a chef and restaurant operator and has paved the way for chefs like us.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.yangbanla.com
- Instagram: @yangbanla
Image Credits
John Troxell Anne Fishbein Chris Shintani
