Restaurant in New York City, United States
Counter-format Korean tasting menu, book early.
bōm is one of New York's hardest Korean reservations to land and one of the more rewarding — a Michelin-starred counter tasting menu from chef Brian Kim, ranked #83 in North America by Opinionated About Dining in 2025. The wagyu-forward format, live counter grills, and luxury ingredient stacking make this the right call for diners who want premium Korean cooking at the top of the city's range.
Getting a seat at bōm is genuinely difficult. The counter at this Flatiron tasting-menu restaurant fills fast, and with Michelin recognition and a climb from #179 to #83 on Opinionated About Dining's North America list between 2024 and 2025, demand is only moving in one direction. If you are planning a first visit, build in lead time and treat the reservation as the first decision to make, not the last. The reward for that effort is a contemporary Korean counter experience that is harder to replicate elsewhere in New York than most diners expect.
bōm sits behind sister restaurant Oiji Mi at 17 W 19th Street in the Flatiron district. The room makes an immediate impression: soaring ceilings, sharply dressed servers, and a spacious marble counter with built-in barbecue grills that work quietly throughout the evening. A dry-aging chamber sits in full view of the dining room, stocked with premium cuts that will be seared at the counter in front of you. For a first-timer, that visual setup is part of the experience — you are watching the kitchen work at close range, which changes the pace of the meal.
Chef Brian Kim runs a menu that goes well beyond the wagyu beef that anchors the counter. Luxury ingredients , uni, caviar, truffles, crab , appear throughout, and the kitchen stacks them without restraint. Documented highlights from recent service include a croustade of baesuk, jujube, and tofu, and a bone broth with radish that shows the kitchen's range beyond the obvious premium cuts. The format is tasting-menu, which means you are committing to the full arc of the evening. At the $$$$ price tier, that commitment should be made with eyes open: this is one of the more expensive tables in a city with no shortage of expensive tables.
The venue database does not specify a wine list or pairing tier for bōm, so specific bottle counts, pairing prices, or sommeliers cannot be confirmed here. What the format implies, however, is worth noting for first-timers: contemporary Korean tasting menus at this price point typically offer beverage pairing options that are designed to move alongside the menu's flavour shifts, from lighter courses through the richer beef-forward sections to any dessert close. If wine or beverage pairing matters to your decision, confirm the pairing options and their pricing directly when booking. At $$$$ without pairing, you are already at a significant per-head outlay; pairing will add meaningfully to the total.
For context in the New York Korean dining category: venues like Atomix have built their reputation partly on pairing programs that match the ambition of the kitchen. bōm's positioning as a counter-format tasting menu with visible dry-aging and live grill work suggests the beverage program is curated to match, but verify before you go.
If you are deciding between bōm and other Korean-forward restaurants in New York City, the competitive set is sharper than it used to be. Jua and Jeju Noodle Bar offer Korean-influenced tasting and noodle formats at different price points. Meju, 8282, and Ariari offer further reference points across the city's Korean dining range. bōm's distinction is the wagyu-forward counter format and the stacking of luxury ingredients , it is not trying to be a broad Korean menu but a precision exercise at the high end of the category.
For Korean dining at the top tier globally, Mingles and Kwonsooksoo in Seoul remain the reference points. bōm is working from a similar creative vocabulary , contemporary Korean with technical ambition , but positioned for a New York diner who is not flying to Seoul.
| Detail | bōm | Atomix | Masa |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cuisine | Contemporary Korean | Modern Korean | Japanese / Sushi |
| Price tier | $$$$ | $$$$ | $$$$ |
| Format | Counter tasting menu | Counter tasting menu | Counter omakase |
| Booking difficulty | Hard | Hard | Very hard |
| Michelin stars | 1 (2024) | 2 | 3 |
| OAD North America rank | #83 (2025) | Listed | Listed |
| Dinner service | Tue–Sun from 5:30 PM (Sun from 5 PM) | Varies | Varies |
| Lunch | Not available | Not available | Not available |
bōm is closed on Mondays. Dinner runs from 5:30 PM Tuesday through Saturday, with Sunday service starting at 5 PM. There is no lunch service, which means this is a dinner-only commitment. Book as far ahead as the reservation system allows , the combination of a small counter, a Michelin star, and a rising OAD ranking makes this a hard table to walk into without a plan. If you are building an evening around it, the Flatiron location is well-served by transit and the neighbourhood has enough options for a pre-dinner drink without much planning effort.
bōm is the right call if you want a Korean tasting menu at the leading of New York's current range, delivered in a counter format where the theatre of the kitchen is part of the experience. The dry-aging chamber and the live grill work are not decorative , they are central to what makes the format distinct. If you are a first-timer to high-end Korean dining in New York, this is one of the clearer places to start: the visual setup makes the progression of the meal legible in a way that some tasting-menu formats do not. If you want the most technically decorated Korean table in the city, Atomix holds more Michelin stars. If the wagyu counter format and the luxury-stacking approach are what you are after, bōm earns its place at the $$$$ tier.
For broader context on dining in the city, see our full New York City restaurants guide. For where to stay, our New York City hotels guide covers the full range. And if you are building a longer trip, bars, wineries, and experiences guides are also available. For comparable tasting-menu ambition at the leading of the US market, reference points include Alinea in Chicago, The French Laundry in Napa, Single Thread Farm in Healdsburg, Lazy Bear in San Francisco, Providence in Los Angeles, and Emeril's in New Orleans.
For contemporary Korean at the same price tier, Atomix is the closest comparison , it holds two Michelin stars versus bōm's one and leans more heavily on a structured pairing program. If you want Korean-influenced dining at a lower commitment level, Jua and Jeju Noodle Bar are worth considering. Meju, 8282, and Ariari extend the range further. Outside New York, Mingles and Kwonsooksoo in Seoul are the global reference points for modern Korean at this level.
Expect a counter-format tasting menu at a $$$$ price point with no walk-in availability in practice. The dry-aging chamber and built-in counter grills are visible from your seat, so the kitchen's process is part of what you are paying for. Luxury ingredients , wagyu, uni, caviar, truffles , appear throughout the menu in combination. Book well in advance; the Michelin recognition and the OAD Top 100 North America ranking (#83 in 2025) have made this a difficult reservation. There is no lunch service, so plan for a full dinner evening.
The counter format makes bōm one of the better high-end options in New York for solo diners. Sitting at the marble counter gives a clear sightline to the kitchen and grill work, and the pacing of a tasting menu means you are not managing a la carte choices alone. At $$$$ solo, the spend is significant, but the format is genuinely suited to a single seat. If solo counter dining at this price tier appeals, bōm and Atomix are the two Korean options worth comparing directly.
Counter seating is not typically configured for large groups , the format is better suited to parties of two or small tables. If you are planning a group visit, contact the restaurant directly before booking to understand capacity options; specific group policies and private dining availability are not confirmed in available data. For groups that want the $$$$ Korean tasting-menu format, verifying group size limits upfront will save a difficult conversation later.
bōm does not offer lunch service. All sittings are dinner, running from 5:30 PM Tuesday through Saturday and 5 PM on Sunday. The venue is closed Monday. This is a dinner-only destination, so the lunch-versus-dinner question does not apply here. If you are looking for a Korean tasting-menu option with lunch availability in New York, check the broader NYC Korean dining category for alternatives.
| Venue | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|
| bōm | $$$$ | — |
| Le Bernardin | $$$$ | — |
| Atomix | $$$$ | — |
| Eleven Madison Park | $$$$ | — |
| Masa | $$$$ | — |
| Per Se | $$$$ | — |
A quick look at how bōm measures up.
Atomix is the most direct comparison — also a Korean tasting menu with serious awards pedigree, though it leans more cerebral and less focused on premium beef. Jua and Jeju Noodle Bar serve Korean-forward cooking at lower price points if the $$$$ format at bōm feels hard to justify. For those drawn specifically to the wagyu and luxury-on-luxury stacking, bōm has a distinct edge in that lane.
This is a counter tasting menu behind sister restaurant Oiji Mi at 17 W 19th Street — not a traditional à la carte Korean dinner. Expect premium cuts like tenderloin, short rib, and ribeye seared on built-in marble counter grills, alongside ingredients like uni, caviar, and truffle. The format is dinner-only, Tuesday through Sunday, and the Michelin 1 Star (2024) plus an OAD Top 100 North America ranking mean seats go quickly.
Yes — the counter format is well-suited to solo diners. A spacious marble counter with built-in grills means you have a direct sightline to the cooking, and the theatre of the dry-aging chamber visible from the dining room gives solo guests plenty to engage with. At $$$$ per head, it is a significant solo spend, but the counter setting makes it less awkward than a table-for-one at a conventional fine dining room.
Counter-format restaurants like bōm are generally best for parties of two to four. Larger groups should check the venue's official channels to confirm availability and whether the counter can be configured accordingly — the venue database does not confirm a private dining room. Groups expecting a social, share-everything-style dinner may find the tasting menu format limiting compared to a more flexible Korean barbecue setup.
There is no choice here — bōm serves dinner only, Tuesday through Saturday from 5:30 PM and Sunday from 5 PM. Mondays are closed. If you want a Korean tasting menu at lunch in New York, you will need to look elsewhere.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
