Kochi

Is Kochi's tasting menu worth booking in New York City?

Yes — and the answer gets clearer once you understand what Kochi is not. This is not a three-hour ceremony of tableside theater. Chef Sungchul Shim runs an open-kitchen format at 652 10th Ave in Hell's Kitchen where a focused, high-energy team sends out Korean skewer-forward tasting courses meant to be eaten with your hands. At the $$$$ price tier, Kochi positions itself as a more playful alternative to New York's more ceremonial Korean fine dining — and it largely delivers on that promise.

The Kitchen, the Room, the Energy

The open kitchen is the room's focal point, and the atmosphere reads as high-focus rather than hushed reverence. This is not a quiet conversation dinner. Expect the ambient energy of an active kitchen, the rhythm of a grill in full swing, a young team moving fast, the kind of warm noise that signals a kitchen operating with intent. If you are looking for a sedate, white-tablecloth setting, this is the wrong room. If you want to watch food being made and eat dishes that are genuinely interactive, the format suits the experience well. The sensory register sits closer to an energized counter experience than a traditional tasting-menu dining room.

What the Menu Signals About Sourcing and Price

Kochi's menu is built around a sourcing logic that connects Korean culinary technique to premium Western ingredients, and that intersection is what justifies the price point. OAD's description notes Iberico pork prepared three ways (char siu, ssamjang, and skewered with pickled apple), steelhead trout with pickled cherry tomatoes and cucumber finished with tomato and basil foam, and a dessert of blackberry lime sorbet with Calpico and smoked vanilla oil foam alongside mezcal-soaked blackberries. The pattern here is deliberate: Korean frameworks applied to high-specification produce. Iberico pork is among the most prized pork in the world; steelhead trout in a fine-dining context is a choice about texture and flavor precision, not a cost compromise. The sourcing signals that the kitchen is making choices, not filling a tasting menu with whatever is available. For food-focused diners who care where ingredients come from and why, that intentionality reads clearly in the menu structure. For diners who care primarily about showmanship or volume, the format may feel too restrained at this price level.

Kochi and Chef Sungchul Shim's Fine-Dining Pedigree

The menu's coherence comes from Shim's ability to hold two culinary registers simultaneously: Korean roots and fine-dining precision. The skewer format, kochi means skewer in Korean, is not a gimmick. It is the structural anchor for a menu that moves between Korean flavor profiles and European ingredient sourcing. The fact that OAD has ranked this restaurant in its North America top-100 for three consecutive years, and that Michelin awarded a star in 2024, suggests the approach is landing with the critics who track this category most closely. For a deeper comparison of Shim's Korean-rooted fine dining against the broader New York Korean fine-dining field, see the Pearl New York City restaurants guide.

Booking and Practical Details

Getting a table here requires planning. Kochi operates dinner-only: Monday through Thursday 5 PM – 9:30 PM, Friday and Saturday 5 PM – 10 PM, Sunday 5 PM – 9:30 PM. There is no lunch service, which rules out the question of which sitting is better, dinner is the only option. Book as far in advance as possible; with Michelin recognition and consistent OAD top-100 placement, demand runs ahead of availability for most weeks. This is a hard booking in the New York City fine-dining market. Reservations: Book well in advance, 3 to 4 weeks minimum is a reasonable floor, more for Friday and Saturday. Dress: Smart casual is appropriate given the format; the hands-on eating style and lively energy mean formal attire is not required. Budget: $$$$ price tier, expect per-head spend consistent with Michelin-starred tasting menus in New York. Address: 652 10th Ave, New York, NY 10036, Hell's Kitchen. Parking and access: Hell's Kitchen is accessible by subway; street parking in this part of 10th Avenue is limited on weekday evenings.

How It Compares

Pearl Picks: More Dining Worth Your Time

• Atomix, Modern Korean fine dining in New York City, for comparison at the same price tier
• Le Bernardin, French seafood fine dining, New York City's benchmark for technique-led tasting menus
• Eleven Madison Park, Plant-forward French fine dining if the experiential format appeals
• Masa, Japanese omakase at the top of New York's price range
• Per Se, Thomas Keller's French-American tasting menu for those who want ceremony alongside the meal
• Alinea in Chicago, For diners interested in high-concept tasting menus beyond New York
• Single Thread Farm in Healdsburg, Sourcing-led tasting menu with farm-to-table rigor
• The French Laundry in Napa, A benchmark comparison for American fine dining at this tier
• Lazy Bear in San Francisco, Communal-format tasting menu with a similarly energized approach
• Providence in Los Angeles, Seafood-focused fine dining for cross-city comparison
• Emeril's in New Orleans, Regional American fine dining at a comparable price tier
• Alain Ducasse Louis XV in Monte Carlo, For diners planning international fine dining itineraries
• Alléno Paris au Pavillon Ledoyen, Multi-Michelin-starred French tasting menus for European trip planning
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