This Kansas City business has closed. KS.City keeps its page on the record.

Chingu was a full-service Korean restaurant and bar at 4117 Pennsylvania Ave. in Westport, opened November 2022 by chef-owner Keeyoung Kim and long-term business partner David Son — the culmination of the sura-eats lineage that began with Korean food pop-ups after Kim’s 2016 move to KC and a stall inside Parlor food hall. Chingu closed May 24, 2025 (health-and-family decision after the birth of Kim’s son), but the brand continues through Sura Eats sauces, Chingu Soju, Chingu Coffee Co., casita-de-lil-chingu, and a chimaek collaboration with Alma Mader Brewing slated for fall 2026. Tier 1 as-operated: Kim lived in KC (near Union Station) and ran the kitchen himself. NOTE: task brief assumed currently operating; verification found CLOSED.**

Description

Chingu (Korean for “friend”) was Westport’s flagship Korean restaurant and bar, opened in November 2022 at 4117 Pennsylvania Ave. by chef-owner Keeyoung Kim with business partner David Son.12 It was Kim’s first full-service restaurant — a step he described as six years in the making — and served a strictly Korean, family-style menu: four seasonal banchan per table, bossam pork-belly wraps, LA galbi, dolsot bibimbap, kimchi jjigae, pajeon, and Korean fried chicken.123 The bar program, designed with Darrell Loo (of Waldo Thai’s bar), poured $12 cocktails named after K-pop songs — “Candy Sugar Pop,” “Dirt on My Leather,” a gochujang Korean old fashioned — alongside soju, makgeolli, and Korean-flavored iced teas.14 The Pitch called it “the most exciting restaurant to open in KC in months.”1

Chingu also spun out Chingu Soju, billed as the first soju spirit distilled in the Midwest (rice, nuruk, and water; produced with a local distillery partner at 36% ABV), and Chingu Coffee Co. in the West Plaza.245 On May 8, 2025, Kim announced the restaurant would close, with a final service on May 24, 2025 — a decision to prioritize health and family after the birth of his son in March 2025, citing “factors largely beyond our control… we could not ignore.” He added: “I’m proud that Chingu helped introduce Korean food and culture to more people across the city.”6 The closure was explicitly framed as a continuation, not an ending: pop-ups, catering, Sura Eats sauces, Chingu Soju, and expanded food at Chingu Coffee.6

Ownership & history

The Chingu arc is the continuation of the sura-eats lineage:

  1. January 2016 — Keeyoung Kim, from Rockville, Maryland (son of first-generation Korean immigrants), moves to Kansas City after being recruited for a coffee-shop venture; he settles near Union Station.63
  2. Pop-up era — Kim begins hosting occasional Korean food pop-ups around KC.23
  3. Parlor food hall — the pop-ups grow into Sura Eats, a stall inside Parlor (Crossroads food hall).123
  4. November 2022 — Chingu opens at 4117 Pennsylvania Ave. in Westport as Kim’s first full-service restaurant and bar, with David Son as long-term business partner (“Our individual skill sets cover a wide range of the needs of the business” — Kim).123 The opening had been announced for July 2022 and was delayed; a Mainvest crowdfunding campaign (goal $50,000) helped bolster the build-out amid challenges.27
  5. May 24, 2025 — Chingu closes after roughly two and a half years; Kim called it “one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make.”68 The 4117 Pennsylvania space was taken over by AR’s Breakfast & Brunch (Oscar Romero’s Overland Park-based Mexican-American fusion brunch concept), which planned a mid-June 2025 opening there.8
  6. Continuation — the brand lives on: Sura Eats sauces, Chingu Soju, Chingu Coffee Co., and Kim’s next kitchens — casita-de-lil-chingu (Korean-Mexican residency at 1639 Southwest Blvd., opened April 2026 with Gil and Jesus Zavala) and an independently run chicken-and-beer (“chimaek”) concept inside Alma Mader Brewing’s new taproom at 2617 Southwest Blvd., expected fall 2026.910

while later press (cited on casita-de-lil-chingu) describes it as closed May 2025. Verify before publishing.]

Tier classification

Tier 1 — as-operated (historical record). Keeyoung Kim lived in the KC metro (near Union Station), cooked in and ran his own restaurant daily, and built the business up from local pop-ups over six years — the definition of owner-present, KC-rooted independence. Birthplace (Rockville, MD) is not a gate per doctrine. Note: the tier system applies to currently-operating Registry businesses; since Chingu is closed, this classification records how it operated, and the page functions as a lineage/continuation record feeding casita-de-lil-chingu and the Alma Mader collaboration.

Last verified: 2026-07-24 · Source: The Pitch review (Feb 2023) + Feast Magazine (May 2022) — historical; restaurant closed May 2025 · menu_status: partial (as-operated snapshot; prices from press, not brand site) · Confidence: High for items/prices as of early 2023

Banchan & starters

  • Seasonal banchan — four per table, complimentary2
  • Pajeon (scallion pancake, cabbage, onions, perilla leaves) — $131
  • Corn cheese — $101
  • Pork dumplings —4

Mains

  • Bossam (braised pork belly, Napa cabbage wraps, family-style) — $261
  • LA Galbi (grilled beef short ribs) — $281
  • Korean Fried Chicken (six wings) — $181
  • Jjajang tteokbokki — $141
  • Golbaengi muchim (buckwheat noodles, moon snails, frisee, gochujang-pear vinaigrette) — $151
  • Dolsot bibimbap (clay pot) —2
  • Kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew with tofu) —24

Drinks

  • Cocktails (K-pop-named: “Candy Sugar Pop,” “Dirt on My Leather,” gochujang Korean old fashioned) — $12 each14
  • House soju (with local distillery partner, 36% ABV; green-apple soju by the bottle) —24
  • Makgeolli, beer, wine, Korean iced teas —2

Sources

Footnotes

  1. The Pitch — “Serving Size: Chingu is the most exciting restaurant to open in KC in months” (Feb 27, 2023) — https://www.thepitchkc.com/serving-size-chingu-is-the-most-exciting-restaurant-to-open-in-kc-in-months/ — Confirms: November 2022 opening; address 4117 Pennsylvania Ave., KCMO 64111; Keeyoung Kim chef/owner; Sura Eats inside Parlor; menu prices (tteokbokki $14, pajeon $13, golbaengi muchim $15, corn cheese $10, bossam $26, LA galbi $28, KFC $18/six wings); $12 K-pop cocktails by Darrell Loo; Chingu Coffee planned. (Accessed 2026-07-24.) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12 ↩13 ↩14

  2. Feast Magazine — “From the owner of Sura Eats, Chingu is set to serve Korean cuisine and soju in Westport this July” (May 25, 2022; updated Jul 19, 2022) — https://www.feastmagazine.com/travel/article_4eea7e8a-dc43-11ec-bad4-775b878ad313.html — Confirms: address; owners Keeyoung Kim + David Son; pop-ups → Parlor stall → first full-service restaurant arc; menu highlights incl. four seasonal banchan; house soju with local distillery partner at 36% ABV; Mainvest campaign ($50K goal); Tue–Sun hours; originally announced July 2022 opening. (Accessed 2026-07-24.) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12

  3. The Pitch — “Chingu/Sura Eats’ Keeyoung Kim discusses visions of a thriving multi-cultural hub in The Pitch Questionnaire” (Nov 1, 2022) — https://www.thepitchkc.com/chingu-sura-eats-keeyoung-kim-discusses-visions-of-a-thriving-multi-cultural-hub-in-the-pitch-questionnaire/ — Confirms: Kim from Rockville, MD; moved to KC January 2016 (recruited for coffee venture); lives near Union Station; “six years to open our full-service restaurant and bar”; David Son long-term business partner; Sura Eats in Parlor; Chingu Coffee Co. in West Plaza. (Accessed 2026-07-24.) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  4. Kansas City Magazine — “Westport’s much-hyped new Korean spot Chingu delivers” (Apr 3, 2023) — https://kansascitymag.com/westports-much-hyped-new-korean-spot-chingu-delivers/ — Confirms: review-era menu (pajeon, pork dumplings, KFC wings, short ribs, bossam, moon-snail salad, kimchi stew); green-apple soju by the bottle; K-pop cocktail names; family-style format. (Accessed 2026-07-24.) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  5. Kansas City Magazine — “Chingu Launches First-Ever Soju Spirit Distilled in the Midwest” (n.d.) — https://kansascitymag.com/chingu-launches-first-ever-soju-spirit-distilled-in-the-midwest/ — Confirms: Chingu Soju by Kim + Son, first Midwest-distilled soju; rice, nuruk, water. (Accessed 2026-07-24; headline/summary via search — full article fetch pending.) ↩

  6. Kansas City Magazine — “Westport’s Korean Restaurant Chingu Will Shutter Its Doors” (May 8, 2025) — https://kansascitymag.com/westports-korean-restaurant-chingu-will-shutter-its-doors/ — Confirms: last day of service May 24, 2025; address; opened 2022; Kim son of first-generation Korean immigrants; closure reason (health/family, son born March 2025); continuation via pop-ups, catering, Sura Eats sauces, Chingu Soju, Chingu Coffee Co.; Kim quotes. (Accessed 2026-07-24.) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  7. KCSourceLink — “How Crowdfunding Bolstered This KC Entrepreneur’s New Restaurant amid Unexpected Challenges” (Apr 11, 2023) — https://www.kcsourcelink.com/2023/04/11/how-crowdfunding-bolstered-this-kc-entrepreneurs-new-restaurant-amid-unexpected-challenges/ — Confirms: crowdfunding role in the opening amid challenges. (Accessed 2026-07-24; page returned 403 — cited from search index, verify.) ↩

  8. Kansas City Star — “This fusion brunch spot will replace closing Kansas City Westport restaurant” (May 8, 2025; via Yahoo syndication) — https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/fusion-brunch-spot-replace-closing-210002761.html — Confirms: Chingu closing May 24, 2025 after three years; Kim quote (“one of the hardest decisions”); AR’s Breakfast & Brunch (Oscar Romero, Overland Park-based, Mexican-American fusion brunch; also runs Snack Bar in Lenexa) taking the 4117 Pennsylvania space with mid-June 2025 opening. (Accessed 2026-07-24.) ↩ ↩2

  9. Chingu KC official site — https://www.chingukc.com/ — Confirms: site now operates as brand hub for Sura Eats sauces, Chingu Coffee, and Lil’ Chingu; no active Westport restaurant listing. (Accessed 2026-07-24.) ↩

  10. KCUR — “Kansas City brewery Alma Mader building Southwest Boulevard taproom with Korean fried chicken” (Jun 7, 2026) — https://www.kcur.org/arts-life/2026-06-07/alma-mader-chingu-brewery-southwest-boulevard — Confirms: Kim + Jesus and Gil Zavala running independent chimaek food concept inside Alma Mader’s new taproom at 2617 Southwest Blvd.; fall 2026 expected opening; prior Alma Mader pop-ups with Sura Eats and Chingu. (Accessed 2026-07-24.) ↩

See also

Categories

On the record — ks.city/registry/chingu · record updated 2026-07-24