A Food Lover’s Guide to Jagalchi, the new Korean culinary center

Entering Jagalchi in Daly City gives the impression of entering a edible Wonderland handcrafted for K-Foodies.

The complex, a highly anticipated project of the Korean retail chain Mega Mart USA, celebrates the rich abundance and the variety of Hansik (traditional Korean cuisine) and trendy foods, inviting everyone to dig, learn more and cook at home. The first customers wrapped the place on Friday and today, with crowds expected on Sunday – and in the foreseeable future.

The 75,000 square feet emporium, converted from an old JC Penney, is a green hole towards the Restore Court of all Baekhwajeom (Galleria department store) in the Seoul’s sumptuous gangnam district. The name of the Food Hub, however, honors the historic fish market in Jagalchi, the largest seafood center in South Korea in Busan.

Jagalchi director Bum-Suk Ha said the namesake is a cry to the southeast port city where Nongshim, the multinational giant that produces Shin Ramyun and manages Mega Mart, has a manufacturing plant and adds another for exports.

The owners also wanted to evoke the spirit of Koreanity par excellence and durable – HA said: “The Jagalchi fish market is not a place that has flashed and disappeared.”

The first of its kind in the United States, the company aims to introduce authentic Korean cuisine and a gastronomy to an American audience, said Gon Lee, marketing director at Jagalchi.

“You don’t need a plane ticket to get a taste of Korea,” said Gabriella Lee, a specialist in Jagalchi’s marketing.

Fresh seafood and sushi have a wall line, 64 ounces of Kimchi imported and homemade another. There is an alley for Ramyeon, one for Banchan and another for the freshly made dumplings and the Shabu-Shabu cuts. There is an alley in the street, a gastronomic paradise of the temple and a butcher’s counter, shelves neat with imported teas and snacks, k-bauty products, sunscreen with night creams, shiny fruit batteries with vibrant freshness, gluten-free bakery with a dessert based on rice and, in the middle of all, Korean.

The Korean Ministry of Food Agriculture and Rural Affairs has calculated that exports from Korean agriculture and food to the United States reached a record summit of $ 1.59 billion in 2024 (an increase of 21.8% compared to the past year).

But, says Lee, while certain Korean dishes – like Kimbap – have viral moments, the public in the bay region may not have had as much exposure to Korean food compared to Chinese or Japanese cuisine. Jagalchi aims to change this while raising visitors’ grocery experiences.

Here are some elements to know before leaving.

A famous chief is in the building: In the heart of the space of several million dollars is the restaurant with 160 places Pogu, installed by dark wood and filled with furniture directly outside Korea.

Chief Tony Yoo (Yoo Hyun-Soo) works vigorously with his team in the large open kitchen.

Yoo became the first recipient of Michelin-Star in Korea while the executive chief of “24 Seasons” and now has Dooreyoo in Seoul. The chef, who appeared on television, is also a head of the United Nations World Food Program for the Global Zero Hunger Movement,

He resided once in the bay while he was training at the Aqua restaurant, now closed in San Francisco. Now he’s back – in the process of joy the weather, people and steaks and American wines.

He said there were a lot of special ingredients that he had to leave planted in the land of Korea.

“Right now, it’s spring there-the Greens are all out,” he said, sharing that he hopes to bring more seasonal treasures in the United States through local partnerships.

Pogu promotes traditional flavors: The day before the big opening, Yoo presented a test menu that started with a bun of rice flour and one side of the matcha butter cream. Then came a ball of salmon, tuna and calmar hwe (raw fish) dazzled with salmon eggs on a bed of cress, asparagus, trenched beets and cucumber. Chogochang pads (a kind of Korean shrimp cocktail sauce) and a gray seafood paste have finished the plate.

Scented gangwon buckwheat noodles and grated chicken rolled in a green house sauce followed, surrounded by radish slices, chopped green beans, red onion slices, shiny streaks and a group of finely cube (ginseng) supported in a hot skate piercing the nose. The dessert was an Injeolmi cake – a ball of foam pillow sprinkled with roasted soybean powder, with an old -fashioned square of oranda (swollen wheat merged with syrup) and a golden crescent of Yakgwa Gingerie (a making of dynastic, fried leakage, saturated in honey).

“The atmosphere here can be modern, but we will serve traditional food,” said Yoo, ready to familiarize various K-Food fans with classics that they may not know yet. Pogu began to serve its full menu on the day of opening to a reserved exterior, with time and space given to customers to savor their experiences and for cooks to create them.

Don’t miss:

Butcher’s station has a lot of “tomahawk” steaks (ribeye), fresh beef tail and all bone, bone, thick, thin or marinated paper products, beef and lamb imagined for KBBQ and stews.

The refrigerators contain a jokbal sealed under vacuum (pork trotters), whole duck in Buddhist and Ogolgye (silk birds in black lons) adapted to a healthy summer samgyetang (chicken and ginseng soup).

Sea fruits from Korea are a highlight: Beyond the carnage seeing from an entire sculpture table, smart fruits intelligently wrapped and frozen ranging from $ 6 to 15, offer the flavors of Jagalchi de Busan and the Korean peninsula.

Just a few of these love letters are Gajami (Sole Rex), Dried Myulchi (anchovy), the dehydrated Pollock bands for Anju (drinking snacks), Jeonbok (Petit Ormeau), Jogi (Croaker) for the panoramic with salt, Godeungeo (Mackerel) for carts and pots ready to use Jaecheop -Guk (a broth of tiny clams of marshes) and Chueotang (Loach stew rich in nutrients), cod soup kits with Naejang fish (intestines) and Jjin Bori Gulbi, only core in dried yellow at the bara and steam in the water of rice – a deep breast of the cup.

There is more to come: The representatives of Mega Mart confirmed that the company will open another center more like its other grocery stores in Fremont and Sunnyvale this summer in an old building targeted at 1775 E. Bayshore Road in East Palo Alto.

Details: Jagalchi is open daily from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. at 63 Serramonte Center, Daly City; Serramonsecenter.com. Pogu is open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Reservations are available at the open table; OpenTable.com/r/pogu-daly-city-california.

Originally published: March 29, 2025 at 6:01 pm Pdt