New in K-town

"The garden where the scent of burning wood and the aroma of fresh coffee come together," the menu reads. Just another Koreatown cafe with coffee, tea, cakes, sandwiches, a sprawling multilevel patio and a firepit. Even the patio tables at Sanjang Coffee and Garden on Virgil come equipped with buzzers to ring a waitress inside.

Or if you're looking for soju, Bibi Soju and Wine Bar recently opened on Beverly. It's not much to look at from the street, but inside are handsome orange-ish, suede-ish booths separated by curtains of tiny black beads. On the stereo, a mix of Psychedlic Furs, Yaz and Korean pop. On the menu, soju cocktails (green tea soju, yogurt soju) -- though oddly for a wine bar, no wine. But you can get a whole fried chicken with fries, cole slaw, kimchi and two big Hite beers for $21. 

And coming soon on Wilshire Boulevard ... tofu, a village of tofu.

-- Betty Hallock

Sanjang Coffee and Garden, 101 S. Virgil Ave., (213) 387-9190; Bibi Soju and Wine Bar, 4451 Beverly Blvd., (323) 669-4933; Tofu Village, 3807 Wilshire Blvd.

Photos by Betty Hallock

Comments

[sam]

just about every korean restaurant has those nice little buzzers just b/c the service is so bad and unattentive that it is a necessity. doesn't work all the time though...

[pearl]

thanks for the tip!
i'll have coffee at Sanjang next time I'm waiting for my dog's grooming across the street at the Beverly Virgil animal hospital.