Chef Chang-ho Shin is the chef and founder of Joo Ok, the Korean fine-dining restaurant that began in Seoul before relocating to New York City in 2024. Known for his ingredient-focused approach to Korean cuisine, Shin’s cooking centers on fermentation, seasonality, and jang, the foundational fermented sauces and pastes used throughout Korean cooking.
Shin began his culinary career in 1998 and opened Joo Ok in Seoul in 2016. The restaurant quickly gained international recognition for its refined tasting menus and meticulous attention to sourcing. Joo Ok earned its first MICHELIN star in 2018 and a second in 2022. In late 2023, Shin made the decision to close the Seoul restaurant and relocate the concept to Manhattan alongside key members of his team, including general manager Jooyong Kim and sous chef Ben Park.
Joo Ok reopened in New York’s Koreatown in September 2024 and earned a MICHELIN star within months of opening. A second MICHELIN star followed the next year. To maintain the restaurant’s standards and ingredient quality, Shin and his team also operate a farm in upstate New York, where they grow Korean herbs and vegetables and produce their own jang and perilla oil.
