Nowon will close temporarily starting New Year's Day

Citing potential health concerns for its staff and patrons, Nowon will close temporarily starting tomorrow, New Year's Day.

Chef Jae Lee's hit Korean restaurant opened late last year at 507 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B. They ended up having only four months in business before the PAUSE took effect in March.

Nowon re-opened for takeout and delivery in April ...  they also teamed up with Frontline Foods to provide meals for health-care workers.

Below is the Instagram post about the short-term closure. (And Nowon will be serving a New Year's Eve special featuring Korean dumplings and rice cake soup.)

 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Nowon 노원 (@nowon.nyc)

Someone stole the safe from Nowon on Wednesday night

This past week, chef-owner Jae Lee celebrated the first anniversary of Nowon, his well-regarded restaurant that serves Korean-American fare at 507 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B.

And on Wednesday night, someone stole the safe from the establishment.

Lee launched a crowdfunding campaign yesterday offering more details:

We had a burglary at our restaurant on Wednesday evening. Our entire safe itself was stolen. We had over $2,000 in cash. Safe itself was over $1,000.

I spent the entire day today speaking to cops, detective and forensic team. The crook knew exactly where to go, which makes me think he has been here before and knew exactly how to move to not get caught on camera except the office. 

I am raising money to just get back what I lost. I would appreciate anything, honestly. I’ve never fundraised for myself before so if you have any questions or even words of encouragement, I will take it.

Within 14 hours of the GoFundMe, Lee raised the money — and more, and he deactivated the fundraiser. 

The restaurant also released a photo of the suspect from the surveillance video... 

Nowon launching takeout and delivery service today on 6th Street

[Photo from December by Stacie Joy]

Chef Jae Lee is reopening Nowon, the well-regarded Korean restaurant here at 507 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B.

Starting today, he'll be serving takeout items and offering delivery via GrubHub from noon to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. The restaurant is also teaming up with Frontline Foods to provide meals for health-care workers.

Nowon closed on March 15 at the start of the ban on dining at NYC restaurants and cafes.

Find more details at the Nowon Instagram account.

In the kitchen with Chef Jae Lee at Nowon

Nowon debuted last week at 507 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B. This is the first restaurant for Chef Jae Lee, who is serving non-traditional Korean fare here in the 34-seat space.

EVG contributor Stacie Joy stopped by before the grand opening, and watched Lee create, plate, taste and share his royal kimchi rice dish (dry aged ground beef, egg, bean sprout and seaweed) ...

















Lee previously helmed the kitchen — a pop up called Him — at Black Emperor on Second Avenue between 12th Street and 13th Street, where he was responsible for the popular guest menu. His dry aged double cheeseburger with kimchi mayo and dill pickles, which Gothamist called "one of NYC's greatest burgers" when served at Black Emperor, is available here too, though only from 5-7 p.m.

He also served as the executive chef of Rice & Gold at Hotel 50 Bowery.



Nowon, named for the residential district of Seoul where Lee is from, pays tribute to the culture of Korea as well as his family.



Nowon is currently serving dinner from 5 to 10 p.m. Sunday-Wednesday and until 11 p.m. Thursday-Saturday. A weekend brunch service is in the works in the months ahead. (Also coming soon: the liquor license, with beer, wine and soju cocktails.) Find more details at the Nowon website ... and Instagram account. And here's a copy of the menu.

Nowon unveils retro signage on 6th Street

Signage for Nowon arrived yesterday at 507 E. Sixth St. between Avenue A and Avenue B ... as we've been reporting, this is the first restaurant from chef Jae Lee, who was responsible for the popular guest menu at Black Emperor on Second Avenue.

Here's a much better look at the retro sign in the daylight (via Nowon's Instagram)...



Nowon, serving "nontraditional Korean fare," is expected to open in less than two weeks.

August Laura and all the new bars and restaurants coming to this stretch of 6th Street

[Photo yesterday by Vinny & O]

As mentioned last week, the bar-cafe August Laura is expected to open today (Oct. 9) soon on Avenue A at Sixth Street in the former Sidewalk space. [Update: they opened on Oct. 10]

Meanwhile, three other bar-restaurants are in various states of opening preparations on this north side of the block between Avenue A and Avenue B...



• 503 E. Sixth St.



A venture called Down and Out is in the works for this space. The applicants, Knitting Factory alum who are behind The Well out in Bushwick, will appear before CB3's SLA committee tomorrow (Thursday) night.

The questionnaire on file at the CB3 website shows a configuration with 10 tables for 39 diners (the menu is said to serve the "freshest seafood") and a 12-stool bar. The proposed hours are 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Sunday through Wednesday, with a 4 a.m. close Thursday through Sunday.

No. 503 was previously Cholo Noir, the Chicano-inspired bar-restaurant that closed in August 2018 after 13 months.

• 507 E. Sixth St.



Coming soon: Nowon, the first restaurant from chef Jae Lee, who has been running the well-regarded kitchen at Black Emperor on Second Avenue. He was previously the executive chef of Rice & Gold at Hotel 50 Bowery.

Lee recently shared the Nowon logo on Instagram...

View this post on Instagram

Here’s the moment you have all been waiting for. Here’s the name of my first restaurant. Nowon is the name of my hometown in Korea, where I was born and raised. But I also named it nowon because I am no one without my Korean American culture and your support. It’s an all inclusive restaurant where my individuality is not the priority. It’s about us! Let’s get it you savages! Logo design by @overice.nyc

A post shared by JAE LEE ✪ (@jae.s.lee) on Sep 26, 2019 at 4:51pm PDT

No. 507 was last Carma East, the dim sum bar that closed in early 2019.

• 509 E. Sixth St.



As previously noted, the Pineapple Club will be bringing American Polynesian cuisine to the former Out East space here between Avenue A and Avenue B.

There's a teaser site up now for the two-level bar-restaurant.

Out East went dark in December 2017 after eight months serving a seafood-centric menu from the proprietors behind places like Beauty & Essex and Stanton Social.

Meanwhile, back along the Sixth Street of August Laura, there are two new murals... one titled "Dreamy" via @EarlyRiser...



... and another by @art_by_eyebrows...



This space is now going as A6 Art Wall — "dedicated to showcasing established and emerging public artists." Work here will change on a quarterly basis. You can find the A6 Instagram account here.