Our Story
Oakobing is a modern adaptation of traditional Korean shaved ice, made for the American market. Since 2016 we have served it with one idea we have never moved off: light, fresh, and guilt-free. What started as one small cafe in Koreatown now draws lines out the door on summer evenings, one bowl at a time. The bowls have changed with the seasons, but the idea never has.
Oakobing was built by three people who knew each other long before they knew the dessert business: James Kyung, who leads the company; Ted Kim, a friend since childhood, who runs the factory where every flavored ice block is made; and JT Na, who met James at UC Berkeley and keeps the numbers honest. A decade in, it's still the three of us, and that is why the recipe, the standards, and the handshake haven't changed.
It Started in Koreatown
When we opened our first cafe on W 6th Street in 2016, bingsu was still something you had to explain. We grew up on Korean shaved ice and loved what it stood for, but we didn't want to simply copy it. We wanted to make it make sense to everyone. So we built our own version: ice that is fully infused with flavor from top to bottom, not just syrup on the surface, served with a milk drizzle on the side so every customer controls their own sweetness. Korean at heart, with injeolmi, sweet red beans, and real fruit, but made to be understood at first bite.
More Than Dessert
Our name says where it goes: Oakobing, shaved ice served in a jade jar.
The difference is in the ice itself. Each block is infused with flavor all the way through, so the last spoonful tastes like the first. No syrup pooling at the bottom, no melted-down middle. The milk drizzle comes on the side, not poured over the top, because texture and sweetness are yours to set: keep it dry and snowy, or make it creamy. Add mochi, sweet red beans, injeolmi powder.
And it is built to be shared. A large bowl feeds two to four people, which is why it lands in the middle of the table and turns a group toward each other. Light enough that nobody feels heavy afterward. Light, fresh, and guilt-free.
Growing, Carefully
Ten years of running our own cafes taught us what actually holds up: the recipes, the flavored ice blocks made in our own factory, the training, and the standards behind the counter. That's what we hand to franchise partners, not a shortcut, but the system we use ourselves.
Oakobing is currently franchising in California.
Interested in opening an Oakobing? Franchise Opportunities
Come See Us
Whether it's your first bingsu or your fiftieth, the bowl is the same and the table is open. Dine in, pick up, or order delivery.