Just Opened: Swish by Han
It’s an old story: A restaurant has its opening put off again and again due to long waits for licences, construction work and inspections. But now, after nearly a year in the making, the Han brothers have brought a bit of South Korea to the Wellington strip with Swish by Han. The Toronto-born, Philadelphia-raised siblings include Leeto, a marketing major from Pennsylvania State University, who is now the restaurant’s general manager, and Leemo, a George Brown trainee and veteran chef at Edo, Japango and Omi.
The rustic space is a tribute to Seoul chic, heavily influenced by the modern interiors of fine dining restaurants in Tokyo and Korea. Floors are covered in unfinished wood, chandeliers dangle with factory lamps from the ceiling, and a large mural of kimchee pots and original artworks by the Hans’ grandfather (an art professor in Seoul) flank the exposed brick walls. The brothers created much of furnishing themselves, including tables made from old warehouse planks and metal and glass dividers from a GM plant. The chairs are from the 1940s and were acquired from an antique shop on Queen Street.
Leemo’s principle is to introduce a style of Korean cuisine that is “outside the box.” Unlike their Bloor-Christie cousins, the dishes here offer an unpredictable flavour experience. Han spices things up with a menu that’s composed of items from his own childhood: chilled kimchee noodles with sliced rib-eye steak ($10), traditional grilled short ribs “in a secret family kalbi marinade” ($10), a soft roll filled with spicy pork, roasted red peppers and mozzarella cheese ($10), and the “Ssam Trio” ($9)—a mixture of Korean meats and some very Mexican corn tortillas. The Korean-based dishes have also undergone a contemporary transformation (think glamorized street food) that utilizes fresh market ingredients. Examples include the spicy dukboki (a.k.a. rice cakes, $15) with Canadian lobster instead of processed surami, and the popular carrot-chili soy-braised short ribs ($12).
Now in its sixth week of operation, Swish by Han has already amassed a crowd of regulars, business lunchers and walk-in diners. Think Cheers, but with folks crowding around bubbling “swish-swish” bowls (homage to their parents who own a chain of shabu-shabu restaurants in Korea) for their own DIY experience.
Swish by Han, 38 Wellington St. E. (at Church), 647-343-0268.
Please note: With the exception of chairs, lighting and artwork, Swish was decorated in conjunction with Smash on Dundas West who supplied or designed and fabricated the fixtures.
DINER BEWARE …. eat here at your own risk!
I am a regular at Swish by Han – the wait staff know me and greet me. What happened on Friday night when I went to dine with my adult daughter was inexcusable. To be clear – the food is palatable and the music is ear shattering. The wait staff do not like customers, in fact they think being rude and out and out lying is good customer service.
My daughter cannot have spice and there is spice in some of the food. She inquired about the potstickers from a ‘new’ waitress – the lady who always wears a white top (she is related to the chef and the owner) did not take our order. She was assured there is no spice. This is not something I have ever ordered so I didn’t know.
The dish arrives in a sea of soy sauce and chili oil. We call the waitress over – this time we get the ‘lady in white’ – the one who is always there – the one related to the owner. My daughter explains the problem – she can’t have spice, she asked before ordering, this has spice, she cannot eat it – what can be done. Here the comes the unbelievable part – and I am paraphrasing but very close to what is actually said –
1. Oh! – the other waitress should have told you – I will go let her know that she made a mistake. She is new here and doesn’t know the menu I guess.
2. It isn’t that spicy – you can eat it anyway – NOTE: at this point we told her that chili oil makes my daughter ill –
3. The chef is particular about his food and he makes no allowances for guest allergies, you get it the way he wants it and if it isn’t what you can eat that is your problem.
We ate quickly and got the bill. I live next door to this place and am fond of it, so I went back to see this was just some sort of misunderstanding. I get ‘lady in white’ – I am just a waitress I just work here it isn’t my job to deal with upset customers’ I ask where is the manager, there is nobody here to talk to. Shortly afterwards another lady appears claiming to be ‘the manager’. She listens to me. I ask her isn’t the ‘lady in white’ part of the ownership – yes she assures me she is. She will pass on my comments.
No the bill was not adjusted – yes it was $7 and I paid for the dish, but that wasn’t the point.
No-one apologized – the final suggestion as we were leaving – we should ‘order’ more carefully in the future. If we can’t eat something don’t order it.
Okay folks – this is not acceptable by any means at any class of restaurant.