Esther Choi is an influential Chef driven by her Korean roots and is chef/owner of mŏkbar. Locations found in Chelsea Market (original location), Brooklyn, The Hugh, and La Fantome, with a location in the works in Newark. Chef Choi is also a chef/partner of Ms. Yoo, which is inspired by the age-old technique of her Korean grandmother’s cooking. Chef
Esther believes that food is the ultimate expression of a country’s culture. With a personal passion for introducing
New Yorkers to the flavors of Korean culture, Chef Esther’s cooking combines traditional and modern influences
with fresh, seasonal ingredients.
Esther began her professional education at the early age of 14. Her formal training as a chef began at New York
City’s Institute of Culinary Education (ICE), followed by various positions at New York City’s renowned ilili and La
Esquina, as well as that of the Food Network. Esther was the host of Eater’s video series “Kitchen Gadgets”, where
she channeled her cooking prowess and demonstrated compelling Korean dishes and flavors, garnering over 50
million views. She has appeared in numerous Food Network shows such as co-hosting “Beat Bobby Flay” a judge on
“Chopped” as well as the show “Money Hungry” and “Throwdown with Michael Symon”. Guest-starring in
HBO’s “Selena + Chef” alongside Selena Gomez. Finally Esther went to the finale in Iron Chef Quest for an Iron Legend to battle five Iron Chef Legends only to be defeated by a point.
Esther was named a “Zagat 30 under 30” in 2015 and NYC Culinary Rockstar. Her praised restaurant, mŏkbar was
acclaimed as the Village Voice’s 2014 Reader’s Choice “Best New Restaurant” and was awarded “Best Kimchi” in
2015 by Epoch Taste. Among her other enterprises, Zagat declared Ms. Yoo as one of the city’s hottest new
restaurants, while Thrillist dubbed it the best place to eat during a Lower East Side bar crawl.
In 2020-21, Esther was a host and producer of two podcasts. iHeartRadio’s ‘Get down w/Ktown’, where she dives
into the rich world of Korean-American culture. And the Food52 Podcast Network “Hot Offline”, a call-in show
where she tackles burning questions for home cooks.
Her newest Mokbar opened in Midtown Manhattan in the the Hugh, as well as a Mini Mokbar in La Fantome in Riverdale Maryland.
Esther has also teamed up Cook Unity, a subscription based meal prep platform. Esther's meal can be delivered in New york, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Seattle.
