DINING

When Roy Oh volunteered for a humble job cooking for a fundraiser at his church , a spark was lit . He enjoyed cooking so much that he quickly became the go-to guy for Christmas dinners and other large events .

“ I found I was really enjoying myself and had a knack for it ,” Oh says . At the time he was running a vinyl graphics business , but sold it to start his dream of becoming a restaurateur . He began working in kitchens and just a couple short years later , opened Anju ( page 48 ) with his wife Anh on December 31 , 2008 . Their first major challenge arose when Anh gave birth to their first child just nine months later , leaving Oh to handle the restaurant on his own .

While the first three years weren ’ t exactly a breeze , word began to spread around town and in 2013 , Oh took the risk of shutting down the restaurant in order to build a bigger and better Anju . In partnership with the Concorde Group , he reopened a year later at the busy corner of 4th Street and 17th Avenue SW , and the extra space has been more than needed as Anju has risen to one of the most respected and beloved restaurants in the city . The clever and contemporary fusion of Korean food with inspirations from around the globe , draws in restaurant industry professionals , foodies and just about everyone else night after night .

Why did you choose to focus on Korean tapas ? A friend of mine that was in the restaurant business told me I should be cooking the food I grew up eating . I know Korean flavours better than any other so that was an easy decision . I also love the relationship between food and

drinks . Anju ( food eaten with alcohol ) embodies that for me . It ’ s not just about the food but also about the relationship between what would be the best beverage to pair with that food . And the possibilities are endless !

Do you have a food philosophy ? Make food that tastes good and is something that you would enjoy eating yourself .

What is the # AnjuEffect ? That was created by Daniel Ramon , AKA Papi , from Teatro . It ’ s when you don ’ t like tofu but you try it here and fall in love with it , and now all you can think about is crispy tofu . It ’ s eating things at Anju that change the way you think about food and making you crave things you had no idea even existed . I ’ d say it ’ s an unexplained addiction to Anju food .

— Rachael Frey