At Jil’hal Bros, one of the latest Seoul-based eateries to go viral, CEO Kim Woo-sik breaks down the components behind the fusion Middle Eastern-by-way-of-New York-style grub drawing lines of foodies to his new spot.

In his small kitchen he ladles fluffy rice -- infused with turmeric, cumin and three other spices -- in a takeout container, tops it with that quintessential white sauce, layers it with piping hot morsels of seasoned lamb and beef and piles on more white sauce before topping it off with red sauce and jalapenos.

Crisp iceberg lettuce and slices of meaty tomatoes are plated next to the rice, decorated with strips of pita bread.
All that assembly feels like a moot point when Kim uses his fork as a crane to bring the lettuce over onto the rice and meat and then starts to carefully and deftly mix it all together, getting each kernel of rice and lettuce and bit of meat evenly coated with white and red sauce.

This, in Kim’s opinion, is the way that lamb or chicken over rice should be eaten, as a creamy mass of chaotic goodness, where a jumble of fragrant rice, juicy cumin-spiced meat, tangy rich white sauce, piquant red sauce and grease-biting jalapenos meld together into one satisfying bite.

In New York, “there usually are no compartments in the container,” Kim, 25, hashed out his philosophy before digging into a dish he never seems to tire of, “so people just know to mix it all together.”

The pita bread, Kim explains, is best used to mop up the blend of sauces that pool up in the corners of the container.

“I used to eat this every week at a local spot near campus,” Kim, who majored in English literature in New York, said of how he came up with the idea to sell Middle Eastern-style street food in Seoul.

“Personally, I think this food is addictive,” he said. 

Kim felt certain people here would take to the food that has amassed a dedicated following in New York. He couldn’t have been more right. 

Within two weeks of business, Kim and team were suddenly “super busy,” thanks, Kim says, to all the pictures taken by customers when Jil’hal Bros launched in July.

“People come from afar to eat here,” he said, adding that he even gets calls for reservations, “which we do not take,” and requests for drive-through pickups, which are only possible during off-peak hours.

What started out as a takeaway spot, in a nod to the food’s street roots, may soon become a proper sit down and dine spot in the near future, Kim revealed.

For now, provided one of 18 seats is available, customers who want to can enjoy their food in a space that Jil’hal Bros is currently sharing with another soon-to-open restaurant.

During the lunch rush, nabbing a seat is a challenge. Right around noon, a long line forms rapidly outside the take-out window from which hungry regulars are busy ordering everything from wraps filled with iceberg lettuce and hot chicken or lamb and beef to rectangular containers filled with meat-topped-rice.

Kim spent four to five months tweaking his recipes to create eats that sent a respectful nod to the fare popularized by prominent street food veterans like the Halal Guys -- now a booming international chain -- while also maintaining its own style.

For Jil’hal Bros, Kim nixed the more standard pita bread for a Mexican-style tortilla for the wraps and added jalapenos to the dishes. He also cut down on the spices used in the rice.

While he tried to keep the white sauce -- a blend of various ingredients that tastes like a cross between yogurt and mayo -- classic, he modified the red sauce. Also, unlike places in New York, Jil’hal Bros’ food is not halal-certified.

What emerges, in the case of the wraps, is fare that tastes like a fusion Mexican-Middle Eastern burrito-style sandwich, while the rice gets punctuated kicks of heat from the addition of jalapenos.

The formula seems to work in Seoul, attracting regulars, including celebrities, Kim revealed, who come as often as three times a week.

Given its success, it is not surprising to hear that plans are to open a second outlet somewhere in Itaewon or Sinsa-dong.

“We’ve already gotten a lot of franchise offers,” Kim said. 

Jil’hal Bros
124-12 Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
(02) 542-1422
Open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, closed Sundays
Chicken over rice, combo rice or lamb and beef over rice costs 6,500 won ($5.60) to 7,000 won, wrap sandwiches cost 4,200 won to 4,500 won, beverages cost 1,500 won to 4,000 won

By Jean Oh (oh_jean@heraldcorp.com)