Name: Koreatown’s Famous 24 Hour Nak Won Restaurant Has Closed After 34 Years
Brand: eater.com
SKU: eater-com-244
Availability: OnlineOnly

critic

Koreatown’s Famous 24 Hour Nak Won Restaurant Has Closed After 34 Years

preview

Filed under:The restaurant served its last meal on September 30For many visitors and Koreatown residents, Nak Won House was their first-ever. The iconic 24-hour restaurant sat at a visible spot along Vermont Avenue at the busy intersection of Olympic Boulevard for 34 years. Now, Nak Won is closing forever due to financial challenges related to the pandemic. The restaurant announced the sudden closure last night on Instagram, saying that it would shutter at 11 p.m.Nak Won was well-known in the Korean community as a solid all-day place serving classics like bibimbap, suhllungtang, and bulgogi. The humble, well-lit interior with utilitarian decor was the definition of a Korean bunsik, or low-priced restaurant, serving snacks and comfort food. Koreans likened the place to Denny’s, a homey restaurant that served affordable fare at all hours of the day. This was especially useful for early risers who needed a solid meal bowl of soup before going to work, as well as late night revelers who wanted something hot and spicy to soak up the booze. Nak Won was the most egalitarian restaurant in Koreatown. It developed a bit of a rivalry when next door restaurant Hodori opened in 1991 with the same 24 hour format, with both places serving a wide menu of Korean food classics.In fact, this writer had been visiting Nak Won since he was basically born, eating bowls of beef and soup and rice as a toddler. Throughout the decades, Nak Won and its neighbor Hodori operated with all-day service, enduring through the 1992 Uprising and getting through six months of a devastating pandemic. The restaurant tried to adapt with delivery and takeout systems. But it just wasn’t enough, and now Nak Won has throw in the towel. One wonders how difficult it must have been in terms of expenses with running a 24 hour restaurant amid LA’s $15 an hour minimum wage, rising food costs, and rent. Now, Nak Won is gone forever, taking away one of Koreatown’s restaurant landmarks. At the moment, it seems Hodori is still operating next door.Koreatown has dealt with numerous closures of iconic restaurants, from just across the street from Nak Won, to beloved favorites and. Meanwhile, other restaurants, setting up covered tables and serving everything from bar fare to in parking lots and sidewalks.Dear Friends of Nakwon Restaurant,We would like to express our deepest appreciation to you for coming to and loving...Posted by onSign up for our newsletter.Sign up for our newsletter.Follow Eater editors each week as they share their favorite dishes around townFiled under:Filed under:Your handy guide on where to eat from the editors at Eater LAFiled under:The freshest news from the local food world

Filed under:The restaurant served its last meal on September 30For many visitors and Koreatown residents, Nak Won House was their first-ever. The iconic 24-hour restaurant sat at a visible spot along Vermont Avenue at the busy intersection of Olympic Boulevard for 34 years. Now, Nak Won is closing forever due to financial challenges related to the pandemic. The restaurant announced the sudden closure last night on Instagram, saying that it would shutter at 11 p.m.Nak Won was well-known in the Korean community as a solid all-day place serving classics like bibimbap, suhllungtang, and...

public

Matthew Kang

Where to eat and why it matters in the world's best food cities. Sign up for our newsletter ⬇️

eater.com

Credible

Speculation

Anecdotal Evidence

Generalization

Stacking the Deck

Appeal to Authority

Straw Man

Slippery Slope

Emotional Appeal

Red Herring

False Dilemma

Illogical

Moral Equivalency

Ad Hominem

Correlation w/o Causation

Semantics

Begging the Question

Faulty Analogy

Non Sequitur

Bandwagon

Dogmatism

Failing Occam's Razor

Biased

Pure Opinion

Hit Piece

Racial Bias

National Bias

Religious Bias

Financial Incentive

Political Agenda

Gender Bias

Misused Image/Video

Study Misinterpreted

Mistake

Misused Term

Science Misrepresented

Factual Error

Satire

Surface Level

Lack of Reliable Sources

Sensational

Not Credible

Investigative

Balanced

Well Sourced

Great Context

sports

entertainment

U.S.

international

business

technology

science

culture

politics

media

health

Koreatown’s Famous 24 Hour Nak Won Restaurant Has Closed After 34 Years

No article scores yet.

CRITIC REVIEWS

PUBLIC REVIEWS