New York – Walk into 816 6th Avenue in NoMad and you’ll find something different from the Barn Joo Nomad that opened here in 2021. The restaurant now operates under its own name: YOGI GastroNomad, a Korean-Japanese fusion spot that dropped the parent brand to chart its own course.
The change runs deeper than signage. Where Barn Joo Nomad followed the formula established at the flagship Union Square location, YOGI operates with two distinct concepts under one roof.
Table of Contents
Two Restaurants, One Address
The first floor functions as a fast-casual Korean gastropub. Order at the counter, grab a seat at the bar, or settle into one of the tables near the windows that open onto 6th Avenue. The menu covers Korean-inspired tapas, rice bowls, and noodle dishes, backed by a cocktail program featuring house-made syrups and ingredients.
Head upstairs and the concept shifts. YOGI Upstairs runs as a speakeasy with a tighter, more refined menu. The space holds fewer seats, takes reservations, and operates at a slower pace than the ground floor.
Both floors share the same kitchen, led by Executive Chef David Lee, whose French culinary training shows up in technique while keeping Korean flavors at the center.
What You’re Actually Eating
The menu leans heavily into fusion territory. Pasta Nomad Noir combines squid ink tagliatelle with Korean-style stir-fried vegetables, five-cheese bechamel, and seafood (mussels, crab, shrimp). Tteok + Cheese brings together rice cakes, sweet corn, three Italian cheeses, green olives, and truffle oil, served with a focaccia breadstick.
Traditional Korean preparations appear alongside the fusion dishes. The kitchen makes its own kimchi daily, which shows up in the creamy kimchi udon and as a standalone side. Korean fried chicken wings get consistent mentions in reviews. Homemade dumplings come with a house sauce that regulars specifically request.
Happy hour runs 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM daily with $1 oysters. That pricing holds seven days a week, unusual for Manhattan. Weekday lunch specials sit at $22 for an entrée with sides.
The beverage program includes cocktails like the Jalapeno Margarita and Drunken Tiger, both made with ingredients prepared in-house. The bar stocks a selection of soju and Korean beer alongside standard spirits.
The People Running It
Charles “Tiger” Chong owns YOGI GastroNomad through his Barn Joo Restaurant Group, which also operates the original Barn Joo at Union Square (opened spring 2013) and a Midtown location on West 35th Street.
Chong’s background reads like a typical New York immigrant story. He arrived with $300 from his mother, worked warehouse jobs and flower delivery routes, then moved into hospitality. The original Barn Joo at Union Square marked Manhattan’s first Korean gastropub when it opened over a decade ago, introducing farm-to-table sourcing to Korean cuisine in the city.
Chef Lee sources ingredients from Union Square Greenmarket, a practice carried over from the original location. His previous work included interior design and drumming in bands before switching to professional kitchens.
The decision to rebrand the NoMad location as YOGI rather than maintain the Barn Joo name appears tied to giving the space more independence. Where the other locations follow a set template, YOGI experiments with different formats and menu items.
Visiting YOGI GastroNomad
Hours run Monday through Thursday 12:00 PM to 10:00 PM or 11:00 PM depending on the day, with Friday and Saturday extending to midnight. Sunday closes at 9:00 PM.
The restaurant accepts reservations through OpenTable and Resy, though the downstairs operates more flexibly with walk-ins. Weekend evenings fill up, particularly upstairs. Weekday afternoons see lighter traffic.
The space holds about 80 seats across both floors. Exposed brick covers most walls, with wood and iron fixtures throughout. Rope details wrap around columns and railings, meant to represent connections formed over shared meals. Music ranges from live jazz to lo-fi hip-hop depending on the night and floor.
Noise levels spike during dinner service, especially downstairs near the bar. Groups looking for conversation should request upstairs seating or visit during off-peak hours.
The menu runs tapas-style with most dishes designed for sharing. Figure three to four plates for two people, more if you’re sampling across categories. Nothing comes as a true single-serving entrée.
Outdoor seating appears on 28th Street during warmer months, adding about 20 seats to the total capacity.
Where It Fits
Manhattan’s Korean dining scene has expanded well beyond Koreatown’s 32nd Street corridor over the past decade. The original Barn Joo helped start that expansion in 2013. Now spots like Oiji Mi, JUA, and Atomix serve Korean food across different price points and neighborhoods throughout the city.
YOGI GastroNomad occupies middle ground in that landscape. It costs less than the high-end Korean restaurants that have opened recently but runs pricier than Koreatown’s casual spots. The fusion approach pulls in diners who might not typically seek out Korean food, while the happy hour pricing and weekday lunch deals offer entry points for budget-conscious visitors.
The two-floor concept also addresses different dining occasions. Stop downstairs for drinks and a few plates after work. Book upstairs for a quieter dinner. Both options exist at the same address, run by the same kitchen, available any day of the week.
