db drinks: Jinjuu

While Psy’s Gangnam Style is now thankfully a distant memory, the quality of Korean street food in London is going from strength to strength. We recently headed to newbie Jinjuu in Soho in search of TV chef Judy Joo’s moreish modern Korean bites and killer cocktails.

The concept: Meaning “pearl” in Korean, Jinjuu is the debut solo venture of New Jersey-born celebrity chef Judy Joo, host of Korean Food Made Easy on the Food Network.

Joo has an impressive CV, having clocked up stints at Maze, Gordon Ramsay at Claridge’s, The Fat Duck and the French Laundry. Prior to opening Jinjuu last January, she was executive chef at The Playboy Club in Mayfair.

Jinjuu shines a light on modern Korean street food and cocktails with a Korean twist. Its success in London spurred Joo to open a second site in Hong Kong last December.

Sae Woo Pops

The décor: Split in two, there’s a buzzy bar on street level and a quieter restaurant with an open kitchen downstairs, where you can watch Judy in action. Interiors are gritty and urban, with industrial light fittings, concrete tables and grated ceilings.

Stay upstairs if you’re keen to make the most of the cocktails and the high tempo music, or head to the basement if you’re in the mood for a more mellow evening.

The cocktails: Drinks play Judy’s Korean roots via ingredients like ginseng and lime. The White Rice Negroni, for example, features Hwayo 41 soju – a Korean white spirit traditionally made with rice, blended with Suze, vermouth and mandarin bitters.

The K-Pop Porn Star meanwhile, marries Hwayo soju with passion fruit and citrus and is served with a shot of sparkling kumquat soju.

Signature sip: The Spiced Kimchi Mary, made with Jinjuu’s homemade kimchi spice mix, celery and black pepper-infused soju and tomato juice served tall with chili flakes around the rim – not for those who were born to be mild.

The food: You’ll want to order almost every dish on the menu, but be sure not to miss kimchi fried rice and the KFC – Korean Fried Chicken, a mix of boneless thighs and wings served with gochujang and black soy sauce.

The Sae Woo Pops are a lot of fun – crispy fried prawn cakes served on sticks with moreish Gochujang mayo. Our highlight however, were the lip-smackingly good tuna tacos with Korean mustard vinaigrette, jalapeños and yuzu mayo.

Who to know: Try to seek out and say hello to Judy if she’s in town. It might be hard to track her down though as she splits her time between New York, London and Hong Kong.

Don’t leave without: Instagramming the strange Spam-themed wallpaper in the loos.

Jinjuu, 15 Kingly St, London W1B 5PS; Tel: +44 (0)20 8181 8887

Click through for images and recipes of some of Jinjuu’s signature sips.

Bird is the Word

An Easter special made with Yellow Chartreuse, honey, lemon, bitters and a dash of grenadine to give birdy a scarlet tummy.

Apple Pie Punch

This alluring sweet sip blends Santa Teresa Reserva rum, ginger, apple, yuja and vanilla with a hint of smoked whisky and honey.

Soho Sazerac

Our favourite cocktail of the evening, served in a dinky bottle, featured El Dorado 12 year old rum, yuja rice wine and aromatic bitters served with the theatrical addition of apple smoke.

The Interview 

The final flourish was The Interview, a twist on a whisky sour blending Bourbon, orange liqueur, black smoke liqueur, citrus and boricha tea.