Golden Hof - Korean Bar & Grill
Korean restaurant · Midtown West
16 W 48th St, New York, NY 10036
Highlights
Korean pub with creative cocktails, crispy wings, and unique dishes
Korean pub with creative cocktails, crispy wings, and unique dishes
"After opening in February, the combined bi-level Korean restaurants near Rockefeller Center (16 W. 48th Street, near Fifth Avenue) are simplifying their operation. Owner Sam Yoo is taking two separate menus and folding items from both spots into a singular brand, calling the restaurant Golden Hof Korean Bar & Grill; Yoo says the streamline will be easier for guests to understand and notes he also owns downtown’s Golden Diner. Moving forward, there will be one menu on both floors, aside from the Korean barbecue, which will be located in the grill room on the lower level." - Melissa McCart
"If it doesn’t come smothered in a garlic cream sauce or gochujang glaze, your meal at Golden HOF will probably involve bacon, cheese, or a strong pour of gravy. The modern Korean pub near Rockefeller Center isn’t the best place for a well-rounded dinner, but if you need a few drinks and some snacks to soak them up, it’s one of the top options in the area. photo credit: Kate Previte photo credit: Kate Previte photo credit: Kate Previte Pause Unmute From the people behind Golden Diner, who also run NY Kimchi downstairs, this Midtown tavern serves reinterpreted Korean bar food in a cave-like room short on natural light. A booming sound system echoes off concrete floors while groups of coworkers share carbonara rice cakes and buckets of wings that crunch like Cheetos. When your pan of cheesy dumplings transitions to a mound of disco fries, you might lose stamina—but there are remedies for that. Try a glass of makgeolli or a martini that zaps your tongue with vodka and kimchi brine. If you want to avoid the melted mozzarella and squiggles of ranch altogether, you can also just pop in for lunch, when a few $26 sets with banchan, rice, and your choice of protein are available. The full Golden HOF experience requires soju and a crispy bacon pancake, but there's plenty of time for that after work. Food Rundown Cumin & Green Szechuan Wings You need to order wings, if only to experience the uncanny crunch. Start with the gochujang-glazed variety, and try the cumin & green szechuan flavor at least once. The spice blend is so heavy it sticks to your lips. photo credit: Kate Previte Bacon Kimchi Pancake This gooey bacon kimchi pancake with squiggles of ranch is an impeccable drinking snack. photo credit: Kate Previte Buldak Dumplings Incredible. Don’t skip these dumplings in a sticky sweet hot sauce that meshes perfectly with melted truffle pecorino. photo credit: Kate Previte Spicy Ddukbokki Carbonara Arguably better than the Italian version. The gummy rice cakes are lathered in a thick carbonara sauce with cubes of guanciale. photo credit: Kate Previte Jjajang Disco Fries Jjajangmyeon, but with fries and a thick cap of mozzarella. This isn’t a must, but if it lands on your table, it will be eaten. photo credit: Kate Previte Golden Cheeseburger A rare skip, Golden HOF’s cheeseburger is infinitely more generic than the rest of the menu. It’s fine, but nothing you’ll remember." - Bryan Kim
"An uptown Korean pub from the Golden Diner team at Rockefeller Center has launched lunch: for $26 you can get a dine-in-only lunch tray with a protein of choice (chicken katsu, pork belly, spicy mushroom bokkeum, etc.), served with banchan and kimchi. Service runs Monday to Friday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m." - Emma Orlow
"Sam Yoo, a restaurateur who testified at the City Hall hearings, connected his early exposure to diverse cuisines with his work and voiced explicit support for the vendor reforms. He said: “I went to Stuyvesant High School just a few blocks from where we’re standing today at City Hall, and as a young 15-year-old, I was exposed to Indian, Middle Eastern, Chinese cuisines (to name a few) all at an extremely young age,” and added, “To be exposed to these flavors is what has shaped what I do today as a chef and business owner. I support the Street Vendor Reform Package and am testifying in support of Intros 431 and 408 today. I call on all restaurants and New Yorkers to do the same.”" - Andrea Strong
"Taking cues from Korean and Chinese flavors, this New York eatery serves a jjajang-style disco fry topped with black bean and pork gravy, transforming the loaded-fries format into a savory, umami-forward dish." - Jaya Saxena
