You don’t have to look too hard to spot Ockhee’s diehard fans. They’re the ones decked out in the tie-dyed Ockhee tees, jangling an engraved bottle opener off their keys, displaying Ockhee’s branded stickers on their laptops, flicking an Ockhee lighter on and off. Are we speaking from experience? Maybe.
It is, after all, ridiculously easy to fall in love with this new modern Korean restaurant in the heart of Ponsonby. Co-owner Minkyu (Paul) Lee will sort you out at the front-of-house end, while chef Lisa Lee is working on the hot, bubbling stews in the kitchen. They don’t tend to take the easy route here, either: specials can take months to ferment, while their passion for delivering authentic Korean fare has seen Lee spend hours hand-processing chestnuts to serve up dishes you’ll rarely see anywhere else. Billed by the owners as “homey Seoul food”, and clearly personal and important to the people who make it, the cuisine feels good to eat.
The menu itself boasts a balance of sweet, savoury, salty, spicy and acidic freshness that is damn near perfect. Things that rarely leave the menu — like the japchae, sticky fried chicken (served with gloves) and comforting potato jeon — are dishes you can come back to, with a drinks list heavy on natural wine (mostly on tap) to wash it all down with. Don’t forget to finish your meal with Ockhee’s delicious house-made soju before you call it a night.