JAPANESE SOUL FOOD
WITH A TWIST
Koku cafe + Market
opened in 2018
The former chef and co-owner, Kurt created Koku’s soul food menu to highlight the culinary concept of Kokumi, which translates to "rich taste” in Japanese. The kokumi flavor houses richness, body, and complexity that is only possible when cuisine brings together all 5 tastes that the tongue can sense (salty, sweet, sour, bitter, umami). Kokumi is now considered to be the 6th taste and is an exciting new space within the culinary world. We look forward to serving our community with a flavorful, interesting, and unique soul food menu, from our casual space at the top of Queen Anne Hill.
Koku became a reality with the resources and shared vision of two families with a deep appreciation for global foods and cultural experiences. Miki [Co-Owner] and her husband Luis generously opened their home to Kurt while he traveled through Japan during the summer of 2016. One aspect of Japanese cuisine that really stood out to him was the eclectic nature of Japanese cafes that tied together several different cultures in their food, in the art that they displayed, and in the music that they played. Armed with such inspiration and a diverse skill set, this team sought to create Koku Café Market.
Koku's scratch menu represents the culmination of Kurt's experiences in Japan and his culinary background. He studied at the former French Culinary Institute (International Culinary Center) to learn classic French cooking techniques and continued on to work in restaurants in NYC & Washington, DC. Koku's menu represents a new take on comfort food which should be both immediately relatable and curiously unique. In 2023, we welcomed a new co-owner, Kenta Sato, from Yokohama, Japan, as Kurt found a new path out of state with his family. With Kenta's fresh insights and Kurt's beloved and skilled kitchen team, we look forward to continuing to serve our signature dishes!
Not sure where to start? We recommend the Gochujang Pork Rice Bowl! This is still his favorite physical representation of the ideas behind Koku.