Open Market began operations in April of 2021, when husband and wife team Brian and Yoonna Lee partnered up with long time friends Andrew Marco and Ralph Hsiao to conceptualize a new sandwich shop in Koreatown. From the beginning the focus was to create a new retail food environment, highlighting the rich cultural landscape of Los Angeles cuisine and market products.
THE SANDWICHES
The LA food scene is one of the best in the world. A city where a street taco can rival a Michelin star dish. Our menu is a culmination of our favorite places to eat, sprinkled with a heavy dose of nostalgia. For example, The Normandie, a gyudon dip sandwich, is our love letter to Yoshinoya and Philipe’s French dip. The idea of intertwining our childhood love of Yoshinoya’s gyudon beef bowl with a LA institution such as Philipe’s is at the heart of our sandwiches. It is our way of celebrating who we are and what Los Angeles has to offer.
the normandie (gyudon beef brisket dip sandwich)
our wine shop @ Open Market
THE WINE
In June of 2022, Open Market launched it’s wine and beer program in store, highlighting producers who focus on quality, sustainable farming and responsible practices. Though the wine shop began over a year after we first began operations, the pairing of our food with wine was a part of our vision from the beginning. We focus on offering a variety of styles, regions and price points to not only help our neighbors find the perfect beverage for any occasion, but to encourage education and growth in knowledge. To follow our wine journey, follow @koreatownwine, and visit us at www.koreatownwineclub.com
OUR NEIGHBORHOOD
Inspired by the Bodegas of New York, Open Market was created to be a space where strangers can become neighbors. Bodegas are the lifeblood of the neighborhoods they are in, providing food, groceries, news, and comfort. They are spaces where lines of class, lines of ethnicity, lines of language, are blurred and all are welcome. It was our solution to welcome people back from the isolation of the pandemic. What better way to come back together than with good wine, good food, and good energy.
