At Seasoning K BBQ, dinner begins to unfold long before the first bite. Small dishes of colorful banchan fill the table as marinated meats arrive ready for the tabletop grill. Soon, the sizzle becomes part of the conversation, dishes are passed from one person to the next, and dinner becomes something shared rather than simply served. For founder JW Lee, there is something familiar in it all. After more than three decades in the restaurant industry, the flavors he continues to chase lead back to the food his mother made while he was growing up in Samcheok, South Korea.
“Whenever I taste something truly good, I often think about the food she made and the care she put into it,” Lee says. Those memories have followed him from his early career as a chef in Seoul to more than 20 restaurant ventures in the United States. Now, they have helped shape his newest chapter: Seasoning K BBQ, a Korean barbecue experience created specifically for Greeley.
Lee began his culinary career as a sushi chef at a hotel in Seoul, South Korea, before moving to the United States in his twenties. He worked his way through the restaurant industry and opened his first restaurant in St. Louis at just 30 years old. Opportunity eventually brought him to Colorado, where one restaurant grew into another and years of experience developed into Seoul Hospitality Group, the Colorado-based restaurant organization behind Seasoning K BBQ and a portfolio of Asian dining concepts, which Lee now leads alongside Chief Operating Officer Rose Lee. Through it all, one part of his approach has remained constant: he rarely considers a dish completely finished. Lee continues tasting, adjusting, and asking how something can be better.
The idea of bringing that experience to Greeley began through friends in the restaurant industry who introduced Lee to the area. He saw a growing city with a strong sense of community and an opportunity to offer something he believed was missing. “I saw that Greeley needed an authentic Korean-owned Korean BBQ restaurant,” Lee says. “I wanted to give the community an opportunity to experience real Korean flavors, learn more about Korean culture, and feel as though they were experiencing a small part of Seoul right here in Greeley.”
When Lee and Seoul Hospitality Group took over the Greeley location, they reimagined the space from the inside out. The transformation is immediately apparent inside Seasoning K BBQ, where the dining room is polished and contemporary, with Korean influence woven throughout a space that feels warm, intentional, and distinctly its own. Lee was closely involved throughout the process, traveling to Greeley nearly every day as the restaurant took shape. “Each time another part of the restaurant was completed, the vision became more real,” he says. The result is a striking setting for the experience he came to Greeley to create.
Even the restaurant’s name carries several layers of meaning. “Seasoning K BBQ” begins with the marinades and careful preparation that give Korean barbecue its distinctive flavors. It also represents the banchan, the assortment of small Korean side dishes that accompany the meal and are an essential part of Korean dining. Then there is a meaning tied specifically to its new home. “Colorado is known for its four beautiful seasons,” Lee says. “We want to welcome and serve the Greeley community throughout every season, always offering the warmth and heart of Korean hospitality.”
For someone experiencing Korean barbecue for the first time, Lee wants the restaurant to feel approachable from the moment they arrive. There is no expectation that guests already know what to order or what to do when the tabletop grill heats up. Meats are brought to the table to be grilled and enjoyed alongside banchan, rice, soups, appetizers, and other dishes, turning dinner into something interactive and communal. “Korean BBQ is much more than an ordinary dinner,” Lee says. “It is a social and interactive experience centered around sharing food.”
Behind that experience is food that takes time. Marinades require balance and careful preparation, while kimchi and other banchan rely on patience, skill, and techniques rooted in Korean cuisine. Lee developed the recipes for Seasoning K BBQ’s meats, side dishes, soups, and appetizers with support from Seoul Hospitality Group’s executive culinary team, drawing on his professional experience and the flavors he remembers from home. “I believe food has the power to connect people, so I put my experience and heart into every recipe,” he says.
“I truly appreciate everyone who has walked through our doors with an open mind and a willingness to try something new,” Lee says. It is a simple sentiment, but one that captures what he hoped to create here. Seasoning K BBQ is a chance to share the food he grew up with, the craft he has spent decades refining, and the hospitality at the heart of Korean dining with a community discovering it for itself—a little piece of Seoul, gathered around a table in Greeley.
“I believe food has the power to connect people, so I put my experience and heart into every recipe,”
“I wanted to give the community an opportunity to experience real Korean flavors, learn more about Korean culture, and feel as though they were experiencing a small part of Seoul right here in Greeley.”