Kobi Q, ‘Blade Runner Meets Asia’ in the Crossroads

By Kevin Collison

Kobi Q, a new Korean street food place with added flavors from Vietnam and Thailand, is expected to open in the former Czar Bar space at 1531 Grand next month.

“The drive behind it was ‘Blade Runner’ meets Asia,” said the designer working with chef and owner Hyu Ku Kwon, adding “it will be traditional Korean-Japanese with lots of neon lights.”

Kwon is cleaning up and keeping the old bar of the former tenant and will serve traditional drinks such as Japanese sake and Korean soju.

One entree will be Korean fried chicken, but it’s not your grandmother’s variety. This variation has a sweet, honey glaze with garlic and scallions. Other offerings will include Korean spicy rice cakes called tteok-bokki.

Kobi Q will start with a kitchen menu, but there are plans to eventually add traditional Korean grills to the tables. Diners order plates of sliced, seasoned raw meat and then grill their own meal.

Kwon wants his new restaurant to have the same organic feel and vibe of the Crossroads Arts District.

Hours still are being determined, but Kobi Q will likely open at 11 a.m. and close around 10 p.m., later on weekends.