It's rare to find a tasting menu in New York for less than $100 so a restaurant of Jua's calibre at this price point is the kind of gem that locals keep close to the vest. The crispy seaweed chip hides pickled cucumber and tuna rice within, and this bright, flavorsome bite sets the tone for an unforgettable evening.

Chef Hoyoung Kim was the executive chef at Jungsik before opening Jua, where he specialises in wood-fired cooking inspired by Korean flavors. Squid ink sotbap is essentially Korean paella – the rice is cooked in smoked anchovy broth and tossed with kimchi and squid with plump diver scallops on top. You can add langoustines and abalone if you're feeling extra. There might be incredibly juicy sasso chicken, served with a dollop of cumin aioli and soy pickles or sea bream crudo delicately dressed with kombu, yuja and wild blueberries. The six-course menu changes regularly, so there's always something new to discover.

Address: 36 E 22nd St, New York, NY 10010

Website: https://juanyc.com/

If your concept of Korean food is relegated to Korean BBQ and fried chicken, the gentle elegance of HanGawi's vegetarian cuisine will surprise you. This stalwart Koreantown staple has been open for more than 25 years and dining here feels like entering a traditional Korean home. You'll take off your shoes at the door and sit tatami-style on the cushioned floor. Heated floors warm your feet while sizzling stone rice bowls and nourishing soups and porridges warm the stomach, making this an ideal cosy date night choice on a chilly winter evening. Mushrooms, tofu and todok (a mountain root native to Korea) feature prominently on the extensive menu, and there are many spicy and milder dishes suitable for every palate.

You can begin with sesame leaf tofu patties and combination pancakes or dumplings to whet the appetite and try a sampling of flavours before moving on to more substantial dishes like organic buckwheat zen noodles with a medley of vegetables, chili mushrooms or spicy tofu clay pot in a ginger stew.

Address: 12 E 32nd St, New York, NY 10016

Website: http://hangawirestaurant.com/

This modern Korean steakhouse Cote elevates the Korean BBQ concept to new heights. Cuts of USDA prime and American wagyu beef are presented raw at the table, but instead of leaving you to your own devices, a server greases the grill with beef fat and cooks and seasons each piece of meat for you, ensuring each bite is cooked to perfection. The butcher's feast is an excellent choice for first-timers, including four different cuts of meat served with accompaniments of pickled vegetables, spicy kimchi stew, and scallion salad with gochujang vinaigrette and a savoury egg soufflé. You should note that to save the red leaf lettuce and ssam-jang make lettuce wraps with Cote's specially marinated galbi short rib.

Ordinarily, you might have a beer or soju with bulgogi and galbi, but at Cote, you're best off pairing your meal with wine curated by beverage director Victoria James. All glass pours are served by the magnum to keep the wine fresher for longer. Your evening concluded with a shot of Underberg to aid digestion followed by a creamy cloud of vanilla soft serve topped with soy caramel.

Address: 16 W 22nd St, New York, NY 10010

Website: https://www.cotenyc.com/

The restaurant that's done the most to propel current appreciation and acceptance of Korean food among sophisticated diners in the United States is undoubtedly Jungsik in Tribeca. Jungsik defined a more upscale approach to Korean cuisine when the restaurant opened in 2011 and has garnered two Michelin stars every year since 2014. The menu is displayed in both English and Korean and there is an overlap with Jungsik's eponymous sister restaurant in Seoul with signature dishes like tuna kimbap and braised octopus with gochujang aioli.

Décor and service are very much in line with what you'd expect at a European fine dining restaurant, but the kitchen is full of Korean cooks. The meal starts with a parade of banchan bite-sized appetisers like fried oysters coated in squid ink bread crumb and a steamed bun filled with tomato, basil and prosciutto that illustrate the restaurant's East meets West philosophy.

Address: 2 Harrison St, New York, NY 10013

Website: https://www.jungsik.com/

Like Jua, Kochi opened in November 2019 with a very reasonably priced tasting menu – seven courses for $75. Chef Sungchul Shim structures his menu after banquet meals served at the royal court during the Joseon dynasty, but incorporates modern Japanese and French techniques, reflecting his experience cooking at Le Bernardin, Bouley and Per Se. Dinner begins with a vibrant seasonal soup followed by mul-hwe sashimi with tiger's milk sauce. There are opportunities for luxe supplements – osetra caviar, A5 wagyu, abalone and sea urchin – along the way.

Shim's specialty is skewers grilled over binchotan charcoal-like shrimp jeon pancakes with fermented chili oil and glazed vinegar cured mackerel. Even dessert continues along the skewer theme with black sesame ice pops served on a stick. Portions here are generous and cocktails are especially intriguing, along with non-alcoholic mocktails and rare South Korean teas.

Address: 652 10th Ave, New York, NY 10036

Website: https://kochinyc.com/

Jeju Noodle Bar is named after the South Korean island that's renowned for its high-quality pork, this corner "bar" aims to take that nation's comfort food and elevate it to sophisticated heights. This is one of the most affordable Michelin star restaurants in New York (and the first noodle restaurant in the United States to earn the honour). The restaurant specializes in ramyun—not ramen and is run by Chef/owner Douglas Kim.

The dining space mixes old West Village charm with tidy minimalism for a casual, hip and convivial hangout. You can pick your seat at one of the generously spaced tables, or (preferably) at the engaging counter where you can watch each dish come together, if that doesn't have your taste buds tingling, the kitchen's concise number of unique items at a steal of a price will hit the spot. Persian cucumber kimchi with a spicy plum dressing, shiso and sesame seeds is a culinary delight, while the mouthwatering aroma of pork bone broth precedes the arrival of gochu ramyun brimming with curly noodles, bean sprouts and pickled cabbage is a veritable thesis on ace ingredients.

Pyunche salad mingling sushi-grade amberjack dabbed with chimichurri and crunchy vegetables is a simple yet delicious wonder. Behind is the surprising toro ssam bap highlighting the eponymous fatty fish with scrambled egg, tobiko and toasted seaweed.

Address: 679 Greenwich St, New York, NY 10014

Website: https://www.jejunoodlebar.com/

Oiji is a contemporary restaurant in Manhattan’s East Village, creating a new category for Korean cuisine in New York City: Refined Authentic Korean. The intimate but stylish restaurant is accented with an open kitchen, reclaimed wood, exposed brick and ambient lighting with factory sash windows that open out to the bustling streets of downtown Manhattan.

You can explore traditional flavors and dishes while utilizing modern cooking techniques and ingredients, artful plating and portion sizes, Oiji offers a Korean dining experience that is at once familiar and surprising, in a modern downtown setting. All about this restaurant is small plates-style dining, beginning with a wrap of Wagyu slices, brushed with barbecue sauce and topped with sautéed maitakes. Raw scallop slices may then arrive atop shredded snow crab; while vanilla bean ice cream surrounded by potato crisps doused in honey butter boasts enticing flavors.

Address: 119 1st Ave., New York, NY 10003

Website: http://www.oijinyc.com/

Atomix is a restaurant in Nomad, it does a $175 10-course Korean tasting menu. It isn’t the kind of place where you’ll go once a month, or (probably) even once a year when you check the price - but the food is genuinely excellent, and beyond that, there are a lot of little details that make this place worth your money for a very special night out. This restaurant features a 14-seat tasting menu set around a single U-shaped counter, run by chef Junghyun ‘JP’ Park and his wife Ellia.

The courses themselves start small and chilled, then gradually turn into more substantial things like lightly battered wagyu, a tender piece of fish over foie gras with tiny orbs of squash, and some bite-sized slices of perfectly cooked duck with a side of Korean-inspired mole. The dishes are complex and attractive, but you don’t feel like you’re desecrating a piece of modern art when you eat them - and, more importantly, everything tastes very good.

Address: 104 E 30th St, New York, NY 10016
Website: https://www.atomixnyc.com/

Danji is a wee little restaurant on West 52nd Street, done up in whitewashed brick and blond Ikea stylings, naked bulbs, extension cords and a lot of wooden spoons artfully displayed. Customers at Danji will perch on stools along the bar or at high tables in the front of the room, or wedge into the few tables in the back. There are just 36 seats. It gets quite hot in the dining room, as at a crowded party in a small apartment.

Blocks of soft tofu here are quickly deep-fried and boldly dressed with gochujang and a ginger-scallion vinaigrette. Poached daikon rings accompanied by bok choy are glazed with a dark and spicy sauce and stacked high for a dramatic presentation. Vegetarian highlights include spicy, crispy dumplings filled with tofu, vegetables and cellophane noodles.

Address: 346 W 52nd St, New York, NY 10019

View Details: https://www.opentable.com/danji

Haenyeo is named after the legendary female free divers of Jeju island, who for centuries have harvested shellfish and seaweed, in all kinds of weather. It's a dying trade—dangerous, often miserable conditions have discouraged recent generations from making a career out of it—but the historic fortitude and bravery of these women are revered in Korea.

On the whole, the food here is worth waiting for. The menu ranges from scallion pancakes to bibimbap to barbecue meats that come out on sizzling platters, but you should focus most of your attention on the small plates. The grilled oysters each come in a pool of delicious seaweed butter, and sweet, spicy fried chicken wings. And then there’s the rice cake fundido, served in a spicy sauce topped with jalapenos, chorizo, and melted Oaxaca cheese. This dish is part Korean tteok-bokki and part Mexican queso fundido, and it’s the best thing here.

Address: 239 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215

Website: https://haenyeobk.com/