Food Bowl 2024: Baroo, innovator of Korean dining, is The Times’ Restaurant of the Year

Kwang Uh and Mina Park’s reinvention of Baroo, one of L.A.’s defining restaurants last decade, builds on a legacy of creativity and Korean identity. Critic Bill Addison names it Restaurant of the Year.

Sept. 3, 2024 3 AM PT

Baroo owners chef Kwang Uh and Mina Park talk about the history of Baroo, from strip mall restaurant to arts district dwellings and how their love of food, and their customers, have changed the way the cook, work and live. For more, read restaurant critic Bill Addison on why Baroo was chosen for this year’s award.

Restaurant of the Year will be presented to Baroo’s Kwang Uh and Mina Park on Sept. 20 at this year’s Food Bowl festival at Paramount Studios. Tickets are available at lafoodbowl.com.

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Laurie Ochoa

Laurie Ochoa is general manager of Food at the Los Angeles Times.

Mark E. Potts

Mark E. Potts is the senior editor for video at the Los Angeles Times. A native of Enid, Okla., Potts graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a master’s degree in broadcast journalism. He has created and edited video for DreamWorks, YouTube, Microsoft, Sony and BET.