I first discovered Love Kimchi during one of their pop-ups at the Bite Street Food event in Liverpool. Their stall was positioned in the middle of Exchange Flags on what was quite possibly the worst day of last Spring – torrential rain and gale force winds were battering the city centre, yet despite the adverse conditions there were at least a dozen people waiting patiently to be served by a smiling couple in a neon orange trailer. Once I tried their chicken curry with a side of kimchi, I immediately understood why.

Love Kimchi is the brainchild of mum-of-two Hyeon Jeong Yoon and her partner Simon. The couple met whilst teaching in Korea, and after eventually making the move from Daegu to St Helens they took the decision to share the food they loved in Korea with the people of the North West. Hyeon Jeong became the UK’s first Korean food blogger, sharing traditional recipes through her popular YouTube channel and website www.gildedgingerbread.com.

For those who are not familiar with this traditional Korean dish, kimchi is made from fermented vegetables and leaves such as cabbage. In recent years it’s gained a reputation for being something of a superfood as the fermentation process is known to promote optimum gut health – perhaps one of the reasons why Korean women have the longest life expectancy in the world! Made using Hyeon Jeong’s authentic family recipes this delicious, authentic kimchi is handmade in small batches using only the freshest natural ingredients – it’s also vegan, gluten free, dairy free and probiotic.

Having established a retail and wholesale market for their kimchi, the couple made the decision to take some of their favourite Korean recipes on the road, selling out at events across the North West. Hyeon Jeong decided to take the plunge and message Baltic Market owners Independent Liverpool which eventually led to their first 12-week stall at the market. Consistently one of the top vendors at the popular Baltic venue, they’ve just been invited back for a second residency with their street food concept “Little Korea”. Their new menu includes crispy dumplings, tasty Korean fried “Gangnam Style” and “K-Pop” chicken, and of course their original kimchi.

With plans already in the pipeline for a permanent bricks and mortar restaurant due to open later this year, there’s no doubt that Love Kimchi will soon be another of the North West’s incredible independent success stories.

Are you a street food trader looking to make the move into your first bricks and mortar site? Why not get in touch…