YuLin Zhen, Contributing Photographer

At the intersection of Chapel and High streets, the smells of home-cooked Korean food and the sounds of Korean pop music lead to a store lit up in yellow: Cook 2Go.

Cook 2Go is a newly opened food court that serves foods ranging from bibimbap to acai bowls. They have a small grocery station, grab-and-go home-cooked meals, a ramen station and an eating area. Danny Lee, the owner of Cook 2Go, said that he was inspired by his love for food and his Korean heritage to open the store. Cook 2Go already has two locations in New York City. 

“I’m from South Korea, but I grew up in New Jersey, and I went to school in Buffalo,” Lee said. “After I graduated, I like food … and my dad has a deli in New York City, so I wanted to get into this business.” 

Lee and his team came to New Haven to bring more Korean food options to the city. 

They said that they hope that Cook 2Go can be a place where anyone can come to get home-cooked food, even if they have allergies or other dietary restrictions.

“It’s a great location,” Lee said. “We really liked the area and want to try and serve the community … Everybody is so nice here … We are also looking to place more options in our stores. We are thinking about opening a deli section, [opening an] udon and pho station and expanding on the options.” 

Lee and his team are looking to expand their stores across New Haven. They said they “envision many more places here.” 

In particular, they are planning to eventually open up “a soondubu [tofu stew] place.”

Currently, Cook 2Go offers Korean, as well as American, Japanese and Chinese food. Lee hopes Cook 2Go can be a place for everyone to try Korean food. The menu consists of foods such as sushi, ramen, bulgogi, bibimbap, seaweed soup and soondubu. 

Two Korean students at Yale told the News that Cook 2Go is a second home for eating authentic Korean food. 

“The only place I got Asian food was Hong Kong market, where you can find some Korean food but not much,” Christian Choi ’25 said. “So it warmed my heart when I saw homemade Korean food on the shelves of a store in New Haven.”

Janice Hur ’27 echoed Choi’s statements, telling the News that Cook 2Go has brought something new to New Haven. 

Hur highlighted the Korean lunchbox meals at Cook 2Go for their price and speed. 

“I liked how [Cook 2Go] had lunch boxes,” Janice Hur ’27 said.  “It’s a good addition because there are quick microwaveable Korean homemade lunch box-type meals which I usually have to get at a sit-down restaurant for a more expensive price.” 

Last year, Cook 2Go prepared food for BTS and their production crew during the New Years’ Eve ball drop in NYC.