Hana Makgeolli Brewery & Tasting Room — Restaurant in New York

A very solidly middling dining experience for NYC, even accounting for the uniqueness of a makgeolli brewery in the five boroughs.

Food: 3/5. Food is not why you come to Hana Makgeolli. The tofu kimchi is actually not bad, but the pajeon was a confusing experience. It doesn't have the crispy outside one loves to expect from Jeon, nor is the inside particularly fluffy and full of flavor. The rings of red and green pepper placed on top add a pop of color but do nothing for the flavor, and the sauce surprisingly does little as well.

A hard piece of sharp black plastic came out of my pajeon.

Service: 3.5/5. I actually really enjoyed the service by the one server. She was reasonably attentive and knew the menu well, though her knowledge of the brews seemed more memorized than stemming from actual love for the craft.

However, taking major points off for how the team dealt with a foreign object I happened to bite down hard on. A hard piece of sharp, black plastic came out of my pajeon. A different employee (not my server) said it was likely "part of a ladle or something that broke off." The dish was comped, but I was told to just finish eating the Jeon (of which 2/3 was still left uneaten) since "there probably won't be any more of those" as it was "a one-time accident." The employee probably apologized at one point, but the rest of the interaction left a bad taste in my mouth.

I did not eat any more.

Sool (the brews): 4/5 I've had Hana brews since early COVID days and a few times since. In Korea, I used to go around drinking a lot of jeontongju (traditional alcohol). I'll admit the yakju isn't bad at all, if a bit mild and a bit watery. Personally, I enjoyed the makgeolli a bit more over the takju (which, on the menu it wasn't specified what kind it was) as there was a bit more balance in flavor. Overall, I give it kudos for keeping up a steady supply of decent jeontongju...

I… don’t understand how this place has such a high rating. I was really looking forward to visiting, but came away quite disappointed overall. We had the pajeon and the pork belly, and the food was good but overpriced. The Makgeolli on the other hand, ugh, terrible and overpriced. This is NOT how Makgeolli should taste. It tastes like someone thought to make Kombucha for Koreaboos. I guess it fulfills a niche… but why is it all so sour? It’s missing all of the sweetness and savoriness of good, actual Makgeolli. Honestly, get the ones from H-mart instead for better flavor and 1/5th the cost.

We had the Makgeolli flight which consisted of a Takju, Hwaju, and Yakju. We went in the order as recommended, and basically, what I got from the tasting is that more fermentation means more acidity. That’s it. By the end, the Yakju just tasted like rice vinegar diluted with watered down alcohol. That is disgusting and misses the point of a good Makgeolli.

Look, a good Makgeolli is like good sake: it should have balance and complexity, and be easy to drink. It should have sweetness because rice is sweet. It should be complexity because fermentation from yeast brings forth complexity, and can give off so many flavors such as mushrooms, nuts, florality, and fruitiness. There should be minerality giving the drink weight or fluidity. What we get here, instead, is just straight acidity with some unstrained yeast and rice leftovers to make it seem authentic. There’s very little flavor, and really, it feels more like a knock off kombucha from rice instead of actual Makgeolli. It’s a sad representation of a delicious drink, and it makes me sad if people come here and think it represents real Korean Makgeolli.

Oh, also should note that walk-ins will only have standing table...

This was a nice date spot. It was in a quiet and low key area. I didn't try any of the food but it all looked very appetizing and other guests who ordered kept ordering more. The plates looked simple and were expensive for humble food staples such as tofu and kimchi. I wanted more along the lines of drinking snacks and this place fell short in that department with only seasoned peanuts and vegan kimchi. Koreans are proud of their culture and are known for their drinking snacks. Maybe my expectations of experiencing a bit of South Korean hospitality in my backyard were too high. I understand they are trying to run a business.

The makgeolli was exactly what it should have been. In my opinion it is just overpriced. The cocktails were a revelation, the Pinapple Sour drink changed my perspective on what a mixed drink should be like. However, pricing them like they have top shelf liquor when it's rice wine just wasn't appropriate for me. The tastings are more expensive than any other winery, brewery, and cidery that I have been to. That's what really turned me off to the whole experience.

Makgeolli is an ancient drink that is good for the body and the soul and if you know nothing about it, the workers there are very educated on the subject matter. This was a fun and interesting experience but not worth for the price and travel to make it a regular place to visit. I recommend anyone to visit and definitely try it...