Dipping food into other food may be a universal law of deliciousness, and a new restaurant on South National Avenue is trying to prove it — in a boundary-pushing way, at least for Springfield.

While Asian hot pot dining has been available in Springfield in the past, owners say the July 1 opening of Little Korea will be the first time that a southwest Missouri restaurant has made the bubbling, soupy treat into the main focus of the menu.

Tucked in a commercial strip, Little Korea is also the latest example of Springfield's growing taste for Korean food, said its owner, Hong "Jay" Jung. He attributes the trend to copious food programming on TV and Netflix — especially by celebrity chef David Chang, whom Jung calls the "Gordon Ramsay of Asian food."

It also doesn't hurt that you can sometimes hear K-pop tunes on Springfield radio stations, Jung said.

Jung is no stranger to Springfield's restaurant scene. He opened a ramen shop, Omo Japanese Soul Food, in 2017; he opened Kuma Japanese Ramen & Sushi in 2018.

His latest venture is a complete switch.

Why? Credit the broth. The hot pot experience is a little bit like French fondue or Italian bagna cauda: Restaurants like Little Korea provide diners with a variety of vegetables, meats and seafood, all set around vessels of piping-hot broth. Then, you dip.

Little Korea offers a unique hot pot experience

Diners cook the items themselves on the spot by grabbing the food with a pair of tongs and dipping into the boiling liquid

Little Korea offers guests a choice of three soup bases:

A vegetable broth seasoned with soy sauce and ginger (completely vegan)

Another vegetable broth spiced up with red pepper flakes

A broth made with chicken and ginger

Jung's restaurant is unusual in that its nine tables have a heating element built into the table surface for each individual. Each one is controlled by a digital keypad hidden in a drawer under the table; servers help adjust the heat as needed throughout the meal.

In Asia, he said, hot pot usually involves just one shared pot of broth per table. (Pro tip: Don't double-dip if you visit that type of hot pot place.)

By doing it the Little Korea way, Jung said he can cater to groups of people with varying tastes: Someone who wants to avoid spicy heat can do so; vegans can have dinner right alongside meat-eaters.

"There are a lot of vegan people in Springfield," he said.

Once diners try it, they typically get the hang of it pretty quickly, Jung said, but the restaurant's manager, Stephanie Liu, and a staff of servers circulate around to share cooking tips with customers.

Here's one: It only takes a few seconds to fully cook a paper-thin slice of beef or a plump raw shrimp. But the hefty portion of sweet potato and carrot included in each diner's "vegetable basket" take a few minutes, so it's a good idea to set them into the broth before anything else.

Once cooked, diners dip again, this time into sauce. This is a favorite part of the experience for many people, Liu said.

Little Korea offers a gamut of sauces. Jung said he couldn't resist putting "seafood sauce," or spicy mayonnaise, on the list, because it's a Springfield favorite. But there are also options including:

A soy sauce flavored with powdered mustard

Creamy wasabi

Creamy sesame

Ponzu (soy sauce with lemon juice).

How much does it cost?

Jung said public response in Little Korea's first few days operating has been good. Asian clients, he said, have gone out of their way to say it's a good value.

Hot pot for one person costs $11 to $12 plus tip, which includes:

A choice of one protein (beef, shrimp, pork, tofu, etc.)

A pot of broth

A vegetable basket

Steamed rice

A pair of sauces

Add-ons, which can be tacked on for a few more bucks, include:

Udon noodles

Rice cakes

Pork meatballs

Fish balls

Little Korea also begins each meal in a traditional Korean fashion: with banchan, or side dishes. The cost is included with the price of the meal.

When the News-Leader visited Friday afternoon, Liu, the manager, laid out an arrangement of seven side dishes, including:

Kimchi, or fermented cabbage

Pickled broccoli

Glazed potatoes

From China to Springfield: How hot pot spread

That type of special twist is typical of hot pot restaurants. Less a single dish than a wide-ranging food experience, hot pot originated in China and fanned out across Asia, modified by every culture it came into contact with. In the United States, it's been around for many years; it's currently big in Dallas and making its way into smaller heartland cities, Jung said.

Jung said he chose to open Little Korea during the month of July because it's a slow season for restaurants — a good time to train a new staff on a new style of eating before business picks up again in late August.

He declined to specify the investment it took to get Little Korea going — "quite a bit," he said — but said he chose the location at 3354 S. National Ave. because it's across the street from a busy Kum & Go and near a lot of hospital and office centers.

The restaurant is closed Wednesdays but is open 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. weekdays, opening back up for dinner from 4:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. It's open noon to 9 p.m. Saturdays and noon to 8 p.m. Sundays.

Little Korea SGF is the name of its Facebook page.

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