Yuji Lee(SD)

The story that took you to San Diego's hottest new Korean fusion restaurant was epic. Lee Yu-Gyeong, "Yuji" to her friends grew up outside an American base in Korea, arguing with the kids of servicemen about American food versus Korean and developing fascinating ideas about how to merge the cuisine of her grandmother with the foods her friends loved. Including her childhood sweetheart Garrett Klein. After the traditional cooking apprenticeship she found herself branching out, traditional favorites melded with American style and hit it big with the younger generation while earning the respect of the older one. Developing a popular restaurant in Seoul was intensely rewarding, but she still felt the itch to branch out. The move to America began with an unexpected visit from Klein and his wife Nora, despite the obvious potential for conflict between the two women they were instead fast friends and by the time the Kleins left Seoul their support had inspired Yuji. She took a visit to Texas hoping to understand the Texas BBQ tradition she used to argue was inferior to the Korean style she loves. Somehow the result was this glorious little casual place in San Diego, "Dashes of Daegu" a nod to her home city and the fact that most of her food would be described as fusion Korean-Mexican, Korean-Texan, Korean-Filipino... pick a dish and the description probably requires at least one dash. She started the restaurant with the assistance of Nora, a teacher married to Klein a collaboration that's extraordinary in its weirdness and in the way the two women get along. You chat with Nora over lunch at the restaurant as she sings Yuji's culinary praises as a visionary and a student of unexpected flavor combinations, fair enough, the gochujang mole is absolutely stunning. Nora recounts the meeting with Yuji with genuine enthusiasm and bonding over the quirks of Nora's husband. Yuji sits down with you between lunch and dinner service for the profile you're writing.