Ahris Kim has come full circle with Somssi. Two decades after graduating with a hospitality degree from NYU, she’s returning to Greenwich Village with her own restaurant. And it took a village for her to get there.
Kim, a longtime operator behind Na:Eun Hospitality’s family of restaurants including Atomix and Atoboy, is isn’t straying too far from the group. Na:Eun hospitality owners Chef Junghyun “JP” Park and Ellia Park helped develop the concept for Somssi, and have provided mentorship and support for the concept.
“Working with Ellie and JP, I really liked telling their story from the back end. Jokingly, I would say I’m their Olivia Pope,” says Kim, adding that she was feeling inspired to explore a restaurant story that would be her own at just the right moment. Last fall, Ellia and JP asked if she wanted to pitch a concept for the downtown space, which was vacant after its last restaurant concept. Half a year later, Somssi is opening its doors. ”My college professor would always re-quote the cliche saying: ‘luck is when preparation meets opportunity,’” she adds.
Kim describes Somssi as part of the extended Na:Eun family. “Like Atoboy’s cool cousin that went abroad and decided to come back to New York,” she says. “ Ellia and JP’s aesthetic sense is very sharp and posh and cool, but we’re very warm and cozy. And so I think that’s the distinction. But the core DNA of being immigrant founded, and how that translates in New York, is the same.”
Inside Somssi.
Dan Ahn/Courtesy of Somssi
Somssi’s friends-and-family DNA touches every aspect of the restaurant, from the collaborators Kim brought in to help craft the food and beverage program to the interior design, which was led by her Wisconsin-based childhood friend Margaret Muza. Muza filled the cozy brick-walled space with vintage design fixtures and artwork, adding to the room’s lived-in ambiance. “So it doesn’t feel like it’s a new restaurant — it feels cozy and homey, almost like going to an extended family’s home,” says Kim. The restaurant includes an intimate bar, main dining room with eight tables, and additional seating in a back room.
The front door is covered with a sheet of vintage fabric which features a lace-embroidered “Somssi,” which casts the restaurant’s name onto the entry floor on sunny days. “Somssi” means craftsmanship in Korean, and reflects the personal details present throughout the restaurant, from the handprints of everyone involved in its creation covering the wall of one of the bathrooms, to an embroidered artwork created by someone who Kim once babysat. “ Everyone that I brought on to work with me, I knew from a different time in my career or life,” says Kim.
Park helped craft the menu alongside executive sous chef Daniel Gronert, who was part of the Naro opening team and previously cooked at Atomix. The approach to the food at Somssi is rooted in “Korean immigrant nostalgia,” says Kim, adding that their flavor profile isn’t overly referential to Asian cuisine. “Comfort food, but with a Korean take on things.”
Dishes at Somssi.
Janice Chung/Courtesy of Somssi
The menu features “approachable but also kind of adventurous” dishes like Korean BBQ-style beef tongue with romesco and wasabi, kimchi ragu linguine, and roasted mushrooms served on curry-dusted rice with a fried egg. French fries are Somssi-fied with two seasonings, homemade furikake and powdered kimchi cheese. In the dessert category, ice cream incorporates world-famous Chinese taffy candy White Rabbit and five-spice candied nuts.
The bar program is led by Christian Gray, another Naro alum. Cocktails also lean into the idea of “comfort takes on classics,” and include half-sized cocktails, served in thrifted barware. Head sommelier Jenny Eagleton is bringing underrepresented regions into the wine list alongside sake.
The hope is that by giving all of Somssi’s collaborators an open invitation to bring their creativity to the table, that excitement and familiarity will extend to restaurant guests. “ Essentially, hoping that everyone can feel like they’re throwing a dinner party every night,” adds Kim.
And with that, Kim is becoming her very own Olivia Pope.
