How to Drink Like a Korean — Starting with a Soju Tornado
Here's what culinary tastemaker Irene Yoo learned about Korean drinking culture while opening a bar and writing "Soju Party," her debut cookbook.
When Irene Yoo watched her cousins perform old-school soju tricks during a night out in Korea — shaking bottles and creating soju tornadoes — she knew she had stumbled onto something special. That Instagram-worthy moment completely changed her career trajectory from photo producer to Korean-American restaurateur and cookbook author.
Now, with her bar in Brooklyn, Orion Bar, thriving and her debut cookbook "Soju Party" out now, Yoo has become an unexpected bridge between Korean drinking traditions and American curiosity. Here's what she discovered along the way.
Korean Drinking Culture Is Nothing Like American Bar Culture
"Korean drinking was something I was always really familiar with as a Korean-American spending a lot of time in Korea with my Korean family," Yoo explains. But it wasn't until she started researching for both her book and bar that she realized how fundamentally different it is from American drinking culture.
"In Korean drinking, you can't have one without the other" — drinks and food are inseparable. Unlike American cocktail books that often tack on a small food chapter at the end, Korean drinking culture demands that every drink comes with banchan (side dishes) and substantial food. "But Soju Party is not like a pairing book, per se,” Yoo says. “You can pick and choose your adventure."
The Secret to Korean Food's Growing Popularity? It Feels Like Someone's Taking Care of You
After running pop-ups for six years before opening her Bar, Yoo has watched Korean food's popularity in America grow. Her theory? It hits the same emotional notes as other comforting cuisines.
"A lot of the food is really approachable,” she says, specifically mentioning rice with meat and veggies. “At first glance, it can seem intimidating, but once you get into it, there are a lot of flavors that connect to other types of cuisines,” she adds. “It's similar to Italian food, where it feels like someone's taking care of you, feeding you and comforting you with the style of food. It's not super fussy."
And the timing couldn't be better, with K-dramas and K-pop creating cultural curiosity. "All these things tie into each other and create more interest in different facets of Korean culture and food," she says.
Opening a Bar with a Newborn Is Just as Hard as It Sounds
"I would say the biggest challenge was doing it whilst having a newborn baby," Yoo admits, reflecting on launching Orion Bar. But the partnership with her beverage-industry husband made it work. "He was focused more on the beverage side, and I on the food side. That was also a big transition for me,” she adds, “running a kitchen working with staff."
The payoff? Watching non-Korean customers confidently order soju and understand how to drink it properly. "Our customers aren't all Korean. If anything, it's the opposite, so I think that's really cool. A lot of people have traveled to Korea or have a huge love for Korean culture — like K-Dramas and stuff — and really love that there's a place like this they can go to in Brooklyn."
The Best Soju Pairing Isn't What You'd Expect
Yoo's go-to soju pairing is spicy clam soup. "It's a really clear, clam broth-based soup, but it has Korean chili peppers infused into it, so it has a little bite. Something about the brininess and a little bit of that spiciness really makes me crave soju, and it's also a really good soju chaser."
The recipe appears in "Soju Party," along with dozens of other traditional Korean drinking snacks.
Ancestral Traditions Make the Best Dinner Parties
For Yoo, Korean drinking culture connects directly to family traditions like Gijesa, Korean ancestral rites performed on death anniversaries and major holidays. "The idea is that you make a big feast and pay your respects to ancestors,” she says. “It takes so much time and energy, kind of like American Thanksgiving, but every year, you do it."
She's adapted this tradition for her American life, hosting elaborate Korean spreads during Chuseok (Korean harvest festival). "It's a great reason to gather people and have a lot of traditional foods and drinks,” she says.
This philosophy — that drinking is about community, not just consumption — permeates both Orion Bar and "Soju Party," making both feel less like typical drinking experiences Americans are accustomed to and more like invitations into Korean family life.
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