NoMad Activation

Koreatown

Thirty-Second Street’s glorious vertical city — its improbable history, its tables and counters, told across four subjects, each with an essay and its addresses.

With the compliments of the concierge desk

The Fifth Avenue Hotel  ·  250 Fifth Avenue, New York
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The History

The Making of Koreatown

How one block learned to build upward — the Garment District, the 1965 Act, the kye system, and why the neighborhood is mostly above your head.

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The Tables

From the Grill to the Star

How Korean cooking became the most interesting thing in New York dining — the barbecue houses, the Jungsik line, and the two-star room above Korea Way.

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The Counters

Korean Beauty

The counters, the bathhouses, and the scrub — what K-beauty actually involves, and where on the block to go for it.

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The Shops

Korean Shopping

Paper, ink, albums and a photo booth on the fifth floor — the categories American retail let go of, still trading here.

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