THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED Persimmon

THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED Persimmon Restaurant Review:

Chef Youngsun Lee’s sliver of a Korean prix-fixe restaurant bears more than a few touches from Lee’s stint at Persimmon’s East Village neighbor, Momofuku. Backless stools line the one communal wood table, giving the room an austere look. From most of the seats, it’s easy to watch Lee work his magic in the open kitchen, from which he emerges to present many of the five courses. The cooking is a fusion of traditional Korean with a seasonal menu that swaps out dishes every two weeks. Early on, slices of raw fluke marinated in chili paste and squash blossoms stuffed with shrimp and squid straddle traditional Korean flourishes. From the traditional side, pickling is a strength. Beyond the spicy kimchi, bowls of pickled watermelon cubes, garlic cloves and dried fish all arrive with the third course. With bubbling cast-iron pots of kimchi stew with pork belly and a variation on ssäm, the Korean burrito, the third course is the heaviest. Instead of lettuce, diners wrap the tofu and rice ssäm mixture in leaves of whatever’s fresh that day, from perilla to pumpkin or dandelion. The meal winds down with traditional digestives, including simple brown rice in green tea and a sweet cinnamon drink.