By: NICOLAS FIERRO
Salina Post
After financial burdens have been laid upon the owner of Seoul USA, a beloved Korean restaurant in Salina, local community members have rallied together in the support of providing funds to keep the restaurant operating.
"I cannot afford and this place is getting too big," said owner Joomi Bobbett after she explained the struggles of keeping the restaurant going.
Joomi, originally from Seoul, South Korea has been living in Salina for over 10 years and has served the community with authentic, made from scratch Korean recipes at her restaurant, Seoul USA. She calls Salina her '2nd home' as she loves serving the community.
"I want to feed Salina healthy food as long as I can," said Jommi. "I take care of my customers like a family, and I love to feed them with by bare hand. Running this restaurant does not feel like a business to me, I love what I do."
After word went through town that Joomi was struggling to keep up with monthly rent, a GoFundMe fundraiser was started by a loyal customer of the restaurant, Kyle Langley. According to the GoFundMe Communications Manager, Langley 'is now calling on the community to help her through a difficult time.'
The following is a statement from the GoFundMe page:
“Our goal is to raise $7,200, which will cover 12 months of the rent increase and help her stay afloat while she transitions to a new location,” the GoFundMe reads. “Let’s come together as a community to support someone who’s given us so much through her food and her heart. Thank you for your kindness and generosity”.
Joomi described that she plans on moving the restaurant to a different location in Salina, so she can keep doing what she loves to do most. For the time being, she can use some help with additional funds to keep serving Salina.
"After COVID, people do not sit and eat, they just take the food to-go or use delivery," said Joomi. "This is just wasted space and rent, so I told my customers on Facebook about it and they are helping me look for a place."
Joomi is known to help others by giving them jobs at the restaurant and teaching them Korean culture. She commented that many students have worked and are currently working at the restaurant as she not only wants to help them build funds for school, but to educate them on Korean culture and cuisine.
"I want to keep this open, especially to let people know about Korean culture," said Joomi. "I am not just selling food here, but I am also educating the people of Salina with the culture and the food."
Rhonda Dixon, employee of Seoul USA described that Joomi is a 'key part of community growth.' Dixon stated that Joomi taught her how to do 'everything in that kitchen.'
"She (Joomi) taught me that when we marinate the food, to think about the people who will eat it, how it will nourish their bodies and to pray over it so they can have good, quality food that is handmade," said Dixon. "She has supported me and gave me alot of confidence in so many areas of my life."
Joomi stated that she travels out of town frequently to buy resources for her Korean recipes. She described that she pays her travel expenses and purchases the resources 'out of her own pocket.'
"Even though I travel to get food, I do not upcharge that towards my menu," said Joomi. "Because I love this community so much, I am more than happy to do that."
You can donate to the GoFundMe fundraiser set up for Joomi Bobbett "Help Joomi Keep Her Korean Kitchen Alive!" at: https://www.gofundme.com/f/27jm2-help-joomi-keep-her-korean-kitchen-alive